These are Our Wars
by NopeJustNope
Summary: When a girl wakes up on a beach completely lost and without her memories, she has to find a way to survive. Not only is the land she now inhabits harsh and unforgiving, but it is covered in creatures that date back to the prehistoric era. Every day of her newfound life leaves her with the choice: give up or survive. Will she ever find a way off this land? Is she completely alone?
1. A New Beginning

"What the fuck-knockers?" I mumbled as I lifted my hand to my pounding head only to reward myself with a face-full of sand that showered down from my uplifted arm. I spat violently and blinked my eyes rapidly as I flipped around so I was no longer laying on my back. It took me a few minutes to rub the rest of the sand from my eyes as I sat there on my hands and knees. "Some party…" I muttered as I sat back on my feet and swiped at my arms to rid them of sand as well. I looked up from the ground then expecting to see… What? Bottles and blankets from the previous night's activities? I remember drinking… A lot. With… who was I with again?

I scrunched up my face against the harsh sun rays that were beating down on me while I tried to remember anything. My eyes widened in fear when I couldn't recollect anything about my past except for basic things like speech, and miscellaneous tidbits of information. I didn't know where I was, where I came from or even what my name was. I sat there in silence for a while just trying to remember pretty much anything about myself. I didn't even know what I looked like!

I grabbed at my head and lifted a strand of my long hair. "Black," I murmured to myself but as I grabbed more I saw a strand of pink mixed in. I shook my head and let the hair fall back around my shoulders as I lifted my hands to examine them. They were almost the same color as the sand in which I was kneeling except maybe a little paler. My eyes narrowed curiously as I saw a stone-like thing embedded in my forearm. I rubbed at it cautiously to see it it hurt but it just moved slightly with my skin like it belonged there. It didn't look right to me but I'd worry about that later.

I took a deep breath. "Ok… what exactly do you remember… Girl?" I finished my question awkwardly, not knowing what to call myself. By the extra weight I felt on my chest, I figured 'girl' was a pretty safe term. "A party? I remember bottles of booze and music… I don't remember any faces though…" I said to myself anxiously. "I need to find someone. Anyone that can help me get to a hospital or a police station or something to help me remember." I rubbed my knees free of the sand as I stood up.

That was when I finally realized I was completely and utterly naked. I instinctively covered myself and looked around as if expecting someone to be standing there gawking at me. But that's not what I saw. Instead of another human, I was looking into the face of a dinosaur. It peered back at me with a curious expression and I screamed.

The creature balked and stumbled backwards as it began to turn and run from me, clearly scared of my shrill voice. It called out as it ran and two others that I hadn't noticed behind it raised their heads in alarm and began to run beside it, their tails waving back and forth as they padded away on their hind legs.

They reminded me of Ducky from _The Land Before Time_ movies. "Now… Why the hell can I remember those stupid movies and not my own name?" I whispered anxiously with a slight hint of panic in my voice as I watched the ''Duckies' disappear from view.

Suddenly my eyes widened. "If they're here… Oh God, please let the meat eaters still be extinct!" I pleaded to whatever higher power would listen. I didn't know what I'd do if faced with a carnivore. Suddenly the raptors from Jurassic Park crossed my mind's eye and a violent shiver ran down my body. My instincts were telling me to stick close to the coast and that's exactly what I planned on doing.

I looked down the beach in the direction the "Ducky" dinosaurs had run. Immediately I decided to head in the opposite direction from the should-be extinct reptilian things.

Scenes from dinosaur related movies kept playing in my head as my eyes darted around while I walked along the beach, the ocean to my left. I knew better than to yell out for help. That would only bring more dinosaurs. And not the good kind. Though, I was still hoping they were all still dead as doornails. "This is all just a weird, fucked up dream. Yea, any minute now I'll wake up. I'll definitely have to share this story with…" I couldn't finish my sentence. I wracked my brain for any names that could go with a face in my memory. But nothing came to mind. There was just a huge void where my memory should have been.

I glanced down at the gem in my arm again and narrowed my eyes. I had a sneaky suspicion that the red gleaming stone had something to do with this all. The wind blew past me, sending a slight shiver through me as I watched the larger than life plants sway in the breeze. There were ferns that were bigger than me and leaves that were the size of a full blanket. "Time travel! I'm dreaming about time travel! Yea, that's it." I said in a faux perky tone, trying to convince myself that all of this was just in my head. I kept walking, the wind carrying the scent of the sea as its calm waves lapped up on the sand, just out of reach of my bare feet.

I was just looking into the sky when I heard a quiet little chirping noise. I looked around and saw one of those little dinosaurs, I searched my memory for their name and blurted out, "A compy." as the answer came to me. Scenes that involved the cute little scavengers flooded my mind and I shook my head furiously as I began to back away from it. A second one came running out of the bushes in answer to the first one's chirping. I spun away from them and darted down the beach in the direction I had been heading. I didn't bother to cover my unruly breasts as they flopped around uncomfortably from the jarring of my footsteps. I came across a large boulder and clambered up onto it roughly, scraping my knee on the way up its rough surface.

Once safely atop my tall little refuge I crouched down practically flattening myself against the rock as I tried to catch my breath. If the compies had been in pursuit I must have lost them because there was nothing trailing me. I silently willed it to stay that way. As it was, I remained on top of the boulder for a while longer wishing this nightmare would just end. My body was slick from sweat and I wiped my brow as the sand that was sticking to me rubbed against my skin uncomfortably between my weight and the stone beneath me whenever I shifted positions. The sun was significantly lower in the sky than it had been when I had first awoke in this Hellacious place. The oceanic breeze teased my hair and cooled my body which was still damp from my marathon run.

I rubbed my arms to ward off the sudden chill, worrying about just how cold it was going to get when the sun set. The thought of being in a land chock-full of dinosaurs after it was dark out sent a different kind of shiver down my spine. I felt like breaking down and crying, but I refused to do so. My optimism about this all being a dream had been short lived. Though I still couldn't remember or even fathom a way in which I could be somewhere that was inhabited by creatures that were supposed to be nothing more than calcium deposits in rocks. I entertained the idea of staying on the stone all night long but quickly dismissed it. I'd be way too exposed.

Sure, I was safe from tiny threats but anything larger… I swallowed hard and steeled my resolve as I glanced around one last time for any unwanted attention before I slid down off my little refuge. I was scared and humiliated. My breathing came in short, ragged puffs as I tried to fight back my panic. I felt completely alone and abandoned. Up shit creek without a paddle, if you will. The longer I walked, the more jumpy I got as shadows began to cast illusions of peering eyes or movements in the darkness of the tree line. I stayed as close to the water's edge as possible.

I came across an area where the sea met a tiny straight. I looked across the small expanse of water to the land beyond it. There was a larger rock pillar and a single tree a little ways away from it. I was examining the pillar for chances of being able to climb it when I saw a pterodactyl fly from the top and circle around in the sky above. I decided to move on.

I walked just a short distance before I came to an impasse. There was a wide river sprawled out before me. I could easily cross it, maybe not as safely as the shallower section I had passed by earlier that led to that tree. But did I really want to go back? I looked up the river and bit my lip. Who knew what kind of dinosaurs would be up there where the fresh water was?

I still didn't know what kind of dangers lurked in the water and it was dark enough now that I wasn't really in the mood to find out. I sighed quietly and turned around, heading for the shallow section of the straight I had passed up before. The pterodactyl thing had yet to pose any threat to me. I hoped it didn't fancy human a la mode or anything.

I waded through the cool water and just as I was halfway through, my foot hit a slippery patch and I fell. I expected the salt of the ocean to sting my cut open knee, but it didn't. I raised an eyebrow and licked my wet lips experimentally. Nothing. It just tasted like normal water. No salty tang at all. "Huh." I muttered as I dipped my face to the surface of the water and sucked up a tiny bit of the liquid. I shook my head, completely baffled but stood up and trudged on.

I climbed up the bank on the other side but stopped in my tracks when the weird noises made it to my ears. I didn't know how to describe it. Like a mix between chirping and peeping… with a little clucking? Curiosity made me want to check it out, but warily I stood where I was, listening intently.

Suddenly, over a little incline, a fat little bird thing waddled into my sight. The noises were coming from it as it meandered through the grass. It saw me and fell silent for a moment but then started right back up again, completely ignoring me. I studied it more closely as it approached me, pecking at plants every now and then. It reminded me of a fat chicken with a wider beak and stubbier wings.

I walked closer to it, testing to see what it would do and again it just ignored me. "Hmm," I pondered the little creature. "I'm gonna call you killer." I said decidedly with a small smile. It was such a simple creature. "Oh! You're a dodo bird!" I exclaimed as the revelation hit me. The creature, now ingeniously dubbed Killer, looked up at my slightly raised voice. Just then I heard the distant roll of thunder and I frowned. If it rained, I was going to freeze tonight. Already I was feeling a little nip in the breeze. I wandered over to the tree and stopped dead in my tracks. Beneath it was a huge mound… and it was moving. I noticed the distinct horns protruding from its skull that labelled it a triceratops. I involuntarily took a few steps back as it lifted its head towards me.

It stared at me for a few moments then went back to rustling around to get comfortable, completely unfazed by the naked two-legged creature that was me. My stomach churned painfully from all the stress of the day and due to the lack of food within it. Thunder sounded again, this time a little closer and I eyed the tree with the triceratops beneath it wantonly. I was afraid what the thing would do if I invaded its personal space though, so I glanced longingly at the shelter of the tree but turned to walk around it, giving the triceratops a wide berth.

I approached the tall rock pillar and placed my hand on its cool surface as I slowly circled it, both watching for danger and for a small indent to curl up in for the night. On the side closest to the triceratops was a tiny overhang that would hopefully provide me with some kind of protection from the rain if it did decide to come.

I bent down and crawled right up against the surface of the pillar and turned around so my back was flush against it and I looked out towards the horned creature, keeping my eyes on it in case it decided to try anything. To try and lighten my spirits, I pointed to my eyes and then swiveled my hand to point accusingly at the dinosaur. "I got my eyes on you." I warned as I pulled my knees up to my chest and folded my arms across them, leaning my chin on top of them. It didn't take long for the temperatures to drop enough to the point that my body was shivering to help produce its own heat. I didn't move or change positions as I listened to the cries of creatures in the distance. Strange calls bellowed out into the night but they were drowned out mostly by the rain that began pouring down on me. I closed my eyes, trying to ignore my body which was shaking pretty violently now as I tried to think of what I was going to do.


	2. This Little Haven

Something grumbled in my ear and I felt a hot breath on my cheek. My eyes snapped open and I almost screamed as the triceratops from last night took a bite of the clump of grass beside my head. I clenched my teeth as my breathing became quick little puffs of terror, my nostrils flaring with each panicked breath. The trike nudged my face pretty roughly to try and get the moist grass that I had been using as a pillow. Sometime during the night, my freezing body had finally given itself over to exhaustion and the end result was a stiff, aching corpse, an empty stomach and a pounding headache. I rolled my head out of the trike's way and shakily, I slowly lifted myself onto my hands and knees. The trike just kept munching away as I slowly backed away from it. When I was a good distance away, I finally stood up, my back protesting angrily. I stretched and rubbed my neck as a symphony of snaps echoed from seemingly every joint in my body. I rubbed my arms, trying to rid myself of the last of the shivers from last night as the sun shone brightly down on my skin. I yawned and rubbed my eyes. "I need a weapon… and clothes." I muttered as I looked around for anything that could be of use to me. I approached one of the large plants and examined it as I handled the leaves. But the stem was what captured my attention. I snapped the plant at its base and began tearing the stem length-wise, piling each fiber beside me. After an hour, my fingertips were a little sore, but I beamed down at my spoils. I gathered up the stack of flimsy plant fibers and carried them over to my little nook. Luckily the triceratops had decided to move on down the little island a ways. It was just a tiny little island, separated on the one side from the mainland by that tiny straight I had crossed yesterday.

I surveyed the area, my eyes landing on some of the stones that littered the beach. I searched until I found one that looked like shale and I hit it with another rock, splintering the piece just right so it would be sharp. I took my two new sharp tools and headed towards the dead tree on the other edge of the island. It was barely hanging on, a few more days and it would probably give way on its own, becoming drift wood as it floated off into the ocean. I couldn't allow that to happen, I needed the wood it could provide me with.

It took me forever to saw through the dead tree, but when it finally wielded and crashed to the ground with the sound of cracks and snaps, I beamed proudly at my work. I got busy hacking and sawing with my crude tools ignoring the pain that was beginning to radiate from my hands. I guess I wasn't used to this kind of labor wherever I came from.

I paused in my work, studying my hands which were now red and painful looking with dirt caked up under my fingernails. I looked along the length of my arms. They were slender and painfully so. I didn't have the muscle mass needed for the hard work I was attempting to complete.

Next my eyes drifted down to my thighs and I frowned slightly at the few new scratches I'd sustained since waking up yesterday. Most were partially hidden by dirt smudges and grass stains. Aside from my new cuts and bruises, my skin was fairly smooth. No scars or anything marring my complexion. My stomach growled, pulling me back to my senses as I looked at all the wood I had worked through. I had what I needed to make a tiny little shelter against the rock pillar, but still no clothes or anything to eat. Although I had seen that some of the plants over where the trike was hanging out had berries on them. I wondered, not for the first time, if they were safe to eat. There were also fish that I could somehow try to catch.

I sighed, frustrated at everything I still needed to do. I stood up and headed for all of the materials I had managed to gather. I had blisters popping up all over my palms, but I needed to get all of this done as fast as I could.

A few hours later had me standing there in a crude attempt at clothing made from leaves sewed together with the fibers I had collected. I had a couple spears, flimsier than I would have liked, but at least they gave me some sort of protection. Beside me, small enough that I'd have to crawl to get inside, was my little lean to that hopefully would keep me dry when it rained and off of predator's radars.

I walked up next to the little campfire that I had set up and, after many unsuccessful attempts, had finally gotten it lit right beside my little shelter and readjusted my makeshift temporary clothing while I smiled into the flames. "Now I need food. Desperately bad." I groaned, salivating as my mind wandered to thoughts of General Tsos chicken, or beef on wheck or cornbread. So many different foods crossed my mind, each as appetizing as the next. All painfully out of my abilities to produce.

I heard Killer's distinct call from a little ways away and turned to look at him. "Do you taste as much like chicken as you look?" I joked. Throughout the entire day, Killer had been hanging out around me and I had taken to his company rather affectionately. "I don't suppose you can help me catch a fish or anything?" I asked this to the triceratops who was bedding down for the night. "You know… like… spear it for me or something?" I held up my fingers to my forehead to mimic the trike's horns but dropped them feeling like a dork.

Instead I picked up one of my crude spears and headed down to the water's edge. I stood with only my feet submerged in the shallows as I targeted any fish that got near enough to my post. Jab after jab I missed every time. But I was hungry and my determination wouldn't waver. When a nice sized green and black fish swam by I just barely missed it. I gave chase to my aquatic prey, stabbing at it repeatedly until I was waist deep in the water. I sighed as it darted out of sight and I began to turn around and walk out when something caught my eye.

It was a fish, but it was swimming right toward me. I readied my spear as I waited for it to get within striking distance, but in the dim light of the evening, my heart skipped a beat. It was a piranha. Not just any piranha, this thing was huge. I began backing up frantically while still pointing my spear at the carnivorous fish.

I just barely got to a place with sure footing when the piranha came within striking distance. I thrust the spear forward, straight into the monster's open mouth, its teeth chomped down on the handle as its tail floundered feverishly. I worked against the beast's flailing motions to turn and guide the dying piranha onto land.

I had just turned around when a pain shot up my leg. I yelled, fighting back the urge to drop my catch as I stumbled forward. Another piranha, this one smaller than the first was gnawing on my calf. I reacted out of fear and pain and punched down at the creature, my fist connecting with its ugly head. After the second punch, its teeth which had been tearing into my leg, finally came loose as the piranha swam off a ways to recuperate before coming back for round two.

I whimpered and stumbled through the shallows, heading for the shoreline. Just as I cleared the water, a cacophony of splashing sounded behind me. I dropped to the ground and I turned to see a small swarm of piranhas, apparently drawn by my blood in the water. I shivered as I watched them in their frenzy then glanced at my leg to see the damage.

Back from wherever I had come from, I would have needed stitches. I had no idea what to do with the flesh that was ribbed up and hanging loose in some places. The sight made me queasy so I looked away and limped up to my campfire to cook my much earned dinner.

The piranha, now securely draped over the flames slowly cooked behind me while I took a few brood leaves and tied them around my calf using some of the plant fibers I had gathered earlier that day. I tried to ignore the trail of blood that oozed out of the non-absorbent foliage. With not much else I could do, I returned to my campfire and waited, quite impatiently, for my first meal.


	3. First Hunt

I slept better that night. Whether it was because of exhaustion or because I felt a little more enclosed or maybe since I actually had food in my stomach. I really didn't know. But when I woke the next morning my hands felt like they were on fire. Killer was settled in right beside my little makeshift shelter, sleeping away. I smiled softly, though the smile didn't last as I studied my hands. "This bites." I grumbled, awkwardly crawling out of my little home due to how I was avoiding putting any pressure on my hands. My entire palms were covered in blisters and scratches. They were swollen and painful to bend.

The pain in my leg was no joke either. Glancing down at the rather sad excuses for bandages, I saw all the dried blood that had gathered at the edges of the leaf. I grimaced but tried to think about other things to keep my mind from dwelling on my dire situation. Changing the bandage could wait a little longer. I stretched as I yawned, breathing deeply the sweet air of the morning. The sun was just barely over the tops of the trees and the sky was a beautiful shade of oranges.

Today was the first real clear day since I'd woken up here. I took this chance to study the nearly cloudless sky above me, marvelling in the beautiful colors. I narrowed my eyes curiously and tilted my head as a strange obstacle above the tree line caught my attention. There was a huge tower with a green glow off in the distance. My eyes widened as I realized that it was an honest to God building. "Someone must have built that! I'm not alone?" my heart raced at the idea. I didn't know how I was going to get there though. I could barely handle piranhas, let alone whatever might be waiting further inland.

I stared at the giant pillar-like building. The green, lit up area resembled the same shape as the stone in my arm. Again, I played around with the red gem thoughtfully, wondering just what it was for. As I held up my wrist, I turned it back and forth, watching the way the light shimmered off its smooth surface.

Suddenly my vision went blurry and in front of me there was a list. It was like something brought up a screen straight out of a sci-fi movie. You know, one of those see-through screens that you can interact with via your hands without actually touching anything. I blinked furiously a few times out of confusion. Unsure if I was really seeing this or not. I could barely see the world that I knew was behind the screen, but I could still hear the faint calls from God only knew what animals in the distance. I could still hear Killer who had woken up when I did chirping in his usual comforting way and I was still able to feel the breeze as it lifted my hair softly. The smell of the moist air was soothing but as the sun rose I knew it would become more stifling. I nibbled on my bottom lip as I tried to focus and concentrate on what I was seeing before me, despite the unease it caused me that I couldn't see my surroundings.

Each item on the list had schematics and blueprints that coincided with them. I decided to test out this baffling development so, while still holding my left hand up, palm open towards my face, I began sifting through the list. Though I was only able to access a few of them. I scowled. What kind of bullshit was this? Using my right hand I kept trying to click on the blueprints that were grayed out. Finally I gave up, and began exploring the other things this mystery screen had to offer. But pretty much everything I looked at was confusing and didn't make any sense.

I sighed after a while and dropped my left arm. The screen immediately disappeared and I blinked rapidly as my vision returned to normal. I looked over at Killer who was wandering around, pecking at plants again. "That was some weird shit." I mumbled to the dodo as I rubbed my forehead. I went back into the screen to see if I could find any blueprints or instructions on how to make some decent clothes. When I found the list of materials I'd need and the patterns I whooped softly. I closed the screen again. "I guess it's hunting time." I was definitely going to have to mess around with the schematics some other time. Preferably when I wasn't wasting daylight hours.

I pointed at Killer, "Stay." I ordered him and smiled when he just cocked his head and then started pecking around again. I picked up one of my spears, ignoring the discomfort in my blistered hands and headed to the shallowest section of the crossing. No way did I want to have another run in with piranhas. I was still limping from their vicious attempts to chomp off my leg. Probably would be for days. The water was cool on my feet and the soft sand swallowed my feet with each step.

As soon as I crossed to the other side, my heart began pounding hard again. Any carnivore could cross the section of water I just did, so it wasn't like my tiny little island was safe at all, but it felt safer for some reason. I felt more exposed and in immediate danger on this side of the little straight. Casting one last look at my tiny haven and my two neighbors, I straightened my back and took a deep breath.

Following the water's edge, I headed towards the river that met up with my little island. I needed to get enough hide to tan for my clothes so I watched for any small creature that I could overcome. My eyes darted to and fro in every direction, constantly watching for danger. Every little sound made me jump. I rummaged through my brain for any information I could remember about dinosaurs. Sadly I hadn't really been interested in the prehistoric lizards. In the distance I saw two more triceratops and decided that they definitely weren't on the list of creatures I could take down.

I kept my head low as I surveyed the area for anything that would be in my power to kill. I passed by a couple of large boulders, squeezing between them. As soon as I was free, my feet froze in place as I looked around. On the opposite side of the bank was an open expanse that led up into a dense forested area. The two triceratops I had seen were still grazing there, but now I could see that further behind them was another one. Bigger dinosaurs with large plated spines down their backs and spikes on their tails that I could only assume were stegosauruses grazed further up the hill from them.

As my eyes continued farther up the river, I couldn't help but widen them in awe. "Holy mother of Littlefoot." I whispered, my voice felt weak as I looked at the larger than life Longneck, no wait… brontosaurus. That's what they were called. It was standing on the edge of the water near a fork in the river, chomping on the leaves of some of the tallest trees. Its tail swayed behind it in time with its movements. One glance at its huge, dark green feet made me shiver as I imagined it stepping on me and unceremoniously ending my puny existence right then and there.

Suddenly the measly little spear in my hands felt like a child's toy as my eyes took in each and every dinosaur and creature. Not all the things nearby were scaly either. I noticed a salmon colored pelican looking bird flying just above the water's surface and there was a group of furry little monkeys yelling at each other playfully in one of the trees on the same side of the river as me. And I didn't recognize some of them. Like the furry creature that grazed alone, walking on two legs as it used its claws (which might I add were each roughly the same length as my body) to rumage around in the plant life. There were more of those "Ducky" dinosaurs that I had so unexpectedly come face to face with my first day in this land.

There were others, but they were further away, I couldn't see them clearly enough to even be able to guess at what they might have been. Some shuffling to my right made me jump out of my awe-stricken stupor and I spun to face the sound, holding up the only defense I had. My spear was raised and poised to strike as a fat little thing came waddling out of the bushes, I had no idea what it was, but it didn't look dangerous. If I had to describe it, I would have to say it's rounded tan-brown body reminded me of a sausage with legs.

It continued on its path as it scuffled past me. "Well… it's now or never…" I mumbled as I tried to steel myself into making sure I wasn't at the bottom of the food chain in this place. I lifted the spear and brought it down right behind the creatures head, into its fatty neck. Its tough skin provided it with more resistance than I was prepared for, but my hit was still straight and true.

My spear embedded itself in the creature's neck as its squeals mixed in with the sound of its thrashing feet while it weakly tried to run away. Then, it died. Too slowly in my opinion. I didn't like that it seemed to suffer. But I forced that thought out of my head as I pulled my spear out of the animal's dead body with a small huff. I grabbed its back leg and began dragging it back home, returning myself to my previous vigilance for danger.

I pulled the dead thing between the boulders, grunting with the effort it took. The thing was definitely heavier than it looked. I was breathing heavily in a matter of moments from the exertion it took me. I shook my head, disappointed in my own weakness when suddenly fast, light footsteps sounded behind me, muffled by the sand. I dropped my kill and spun around to face the threat and my face paled. A raptor looking thing with a long neck stood there staring at me. Its soft green body was slender, with long legs. I raised my spear, pointing it right at the dinosaur. It gave me one last look and then darted off, seemingly uninterested in me. I sighed and let my shoulders fall in relief. I took a long calming breath as I watched the thing speed away over a shallow part of the river and right past the group of triceratops.

I cursed my lack of knowledge about these creatures that I now shared a world with. I wondered briefly how I had been lucky enough to survive this long already. Bending over and grabbing the dead sausage thing once more, I headed off back to the safety of my little sanctuary.


	4. The Worst Kind of Neighbors

I was startled awake by my feathery little roommate's frantic chirping as he jumped on my face. A small "oof" escaped me as I reached up, fighting to save my myself from his chubby talons. I held him against me and tried to calm him down. Grabbing his beak lightly, my hands held it closed to muffle his loud squawking. I leaned back against the wall of my little shack, trying to catch my breath that had run away from me.

I had spent the last few days collecting materials and such to make myself an enclosed living space. I was definitely sleeping better these days, that was for sure. I stroked Killer's feathery body and he began to calm down enough for me to fully wake up.

I put him back down on the floor and watched curiously as he began to pace back and forth on my thatch flooring. My enclosure was a fairly decent size now, but it was a bit stifling. I really needed to add some windows or something. I rolled off my little bed, lifted myself to my feet and stretched. Lifting my arms up, I was tall enough to touch my ceiling, but at least I could stand up straight.

I bent down and picked up the sharp little rock I used every morning and kneeled down in the corner of my hut. I made the ninth notch in the corner piece of wood that made up part of the frame of my little shack.

"Day number nine, Killer." I mumbled to my only friend who, it struck me just then, was being abnormally quiet now. I put the rock back down, momentarily forgetting about my sadness at not having found a way off this land. The loneliness was like a constant, loud silence in my head. It was maddening at times which is another part of the reason I tried to keep myself so busy.

Killer was puffed up and staring at the door, completely silent. I cocked my head inquisitively and took a step towards the door. "Wha-?" I just started to ask what was going on to the dodo whom I knew wouldn't answer me, when I heard it. There was a series of quiet, quick thumps on the ground. At least two sets and they stopped just outside of my little hut. I swallowed hard, trying to staunch my nervousness.

Something brushed up against the side of my shack, making the thatch rustle and I jumped away from that side of the building. Killer stared in that direction and puffed up even more. Then a growl just outside my door sounded in my ears and a guttural call answered on the other side of my little thatch building.

"Raptors." I mouthed silently to myself, my breathing picked up from my fright and my heart was pounding so hard I could hear the rush of it in my ears. My hazy brain made it hard to think but I still bent down real quick and grabbed a hold of one of my more improved spears that I had just made the previous day. I wasn't sure what to do. If I tried to run, I'd be dead in moments. Raptors were way too fast to outrun and those talons would rip me to shreds before I could even reach the water.

If I stayed right where I was… I entertained the idea for about point two seconds until another rustling noise emanated from the wall closest to me again. I jumped away from the wall into the center of my floor and fought down my building panic. What a sick joke. I wake up in some weird place with creatures that, to my knowledge, were all supposed to be dead and buried eons ago. I suffered the harsh sun, scary creatures, starvation and cold nights for nine days and just as I start to feel optimistic, I'm going to be chomped to death by raptors. Now I was going to be the dead and buried one… Or at least the dead and eaten one. I swallowed a gulp of air nervously at the thought.

A small bit of hysterical laughter almost bubbled up but I held it back, trying not to succumb to my panic. The rustling intensified and I heard the whisper of breathing as the raptor outside tried to lock onto my smell through the thatch wall. I lifted my spear a little shakily and pointed it straight at the sound. Then suddenly there was a vicious sounding snarl and my wall began pulsating. My eyes widened as part of the wall ripped away, carried off by a red mouth full of pointy teeth. It came back and the wall bent inwards once again around its nose and mouth as it began to rip another chunk away.

I could clearly see through the little hole now. The scenery I could see through it was painted over with an orange hue in the morning hours. The ironic thought I had just had a few moments prior about putting in windows came to mind. If I hadn't been about to die, I'd have probably thanked the raptor for showing me where to add one.

I was jolted back to reality and freed of my panic-induced hysteria when the raptor bent its head and looked in at me. I felt like its gaze go right through me and my body went cold. It let out some kind of call and suddenly thethere was a second one ripping my wall apart now too. Killer launched himself at the wall and kept pecking uselessly at the intruding carnivore's snouts.

The first raptor bit down on a fairly large section and was attempting to rip that off and I saw my chance. I pulled back my arms, jumped forward and thrust my spear right into its red snout. It recoiled away from my shack, calling out its pain with a shrill shrieking noise. The second one paused for a moment but then continued its assault on my wall with fervor. The tip of my spear was dripping with blood as I readied for another attack on the black raptor.

I was just about to strike when the bloody snout of the red one rejoined with the demolition of my wall. I yelled and stabbed at it again, using my body weight to sink the spear in as far as it would go. My aim was a little off and I missed its nose, but the spear sunk into the side of the crimson raptor's face. It threw itself back which jerked me forward as I held on tight to my spear. The spear yanked out with a sickening gushing noise and I fell to my knees against the wall that the black raptor was still tearing at. The hole was now big enough for me to fit my head and one of my shoulders through it if I wanted to. I most certainly did NOT want to.

I clambered backwards over my floor and back away from the wall as soon as I recovered from the fall.

Killer was almost jumping out of the new window with each furious squawk he made. I was surprised neither of the raptors had managed to take a bite of him yet. Relief shot through me but it was short lived and I forced myself back up. I yelled again as I ran forward and jabbed at the black raptor. I had just grazed its nose when the red one grabbed my spear in its teeth and ripped it from my hands. It wasted no time at returning itself to its job at ripping my wall apart.

I launched over to my pile of spears and grabbed another one and ran unflinchingly at the wall. The spear hit the red one again, I felt a little resistance but as the momentum of my body collided forcibly, the spear jerked forward and I felt it sink deep into the raptor's mouth. It ceased attacking, took a couple steps back and collapsed, taking my spear with it.

The black raptor stopped and took a look at its fallen comrade but I wasted no time. I ran over for another spear, only three left at my disposal. I spun around and darted towards the only part of the raptor I could see through the hole as it stood there examining its friend. It looked up just as I drew near and tried to escape my attack. I grazed its eye and it shrieked. It backed away, calling uselessly to the fallen red one and then streaked off. I opened the door a crack and saw the raptor run across the water, a trail of splashes left it its wake. Moments later it disappeared in the tree line of the mainland.

Killer launched himself past me and out the door before I could stop him, his feathers were all roughed up and puffy as he strutted around, looking for the attackers. When he saw the dead raptor, he charged it and pecked at its face a couple times. When it didn't fight back, he puffed out his chest and strutted about like he thought of himself as a mighty warrior.

If I hadn't just had the shit scared out of me, I probably would have thought the sight was hilarious. But as it was… I turned back and looked at the trees across the waterway, wondering how long it would take that thing to come back after me. Possibly with reinforcements. I frowned at the idea and shivered at the idea of fifty of those things converging on my little shack.

Just then, Trois, my clever name for the triceratops that I shared my island with lumbered out from around the stone pillar. "Oh thanks, you coward." I glared at the dinosaur. "Run away and let the human die. Next time, try using your head. Literally. Why do you think you even have horns?" I growled as I went to collect my spears.

I picked up the first one from the ground and inspected it. The wood was splintered where the raptor had bit down on it. I'd have to repair that. Then I tilted my head and studied the dead raptor. I poked it a couple times with the splintered spear to double check, but honestly, the chances of it still being alive were pretty slim I figured. My spear went clear through into its mouth and was buried halfway into the carnivore's head. I grimaced as I began pulling the spear out. It was completely coated in blood. And then it hit me.

"I just killed a raptor…" I murmured in a quiet and reverent voice. Suddenly the thought that I could actually survive this world struck me and I smiled. I finished retrieving my spear from the raptor's mouth and walked around to the door of my hut. I dropped the spears on the ground and headed inside. It was a warm morning, so I knew the day was going to be a hot one. I changed out of my pants and long-sleeved shirt made from patches of hide and plant fibers and changed into the outfit I wore on hotter days.

It was the same tanned color as the other one since it was made from the same materials, but this one was a crop top shirt basically, but I had sewn on braided strips of leftover hide to use as straps so I didn't have to worry about it falling down while I hunted or anything and a pair of shorts. But the most ingenious part of my clothing by far, were the random little strips of plant fibers that I had left loose on them. I used them to tie leaves and foliage to me whenever I went out hunting. My camouflage worked pretty well on the poison spitters and I've even escaped the notice of a few raptors before. I just needed to make sure I was quiet and didn't move when they were nearby.

I stretched and walked back out and picked up my bloody spears as I headed down to the water's edge. I watched the tree line as I bent down and splashed my face and took a few sips before I washed off my spears. The blood turned the water red until it began to dissipate. I wasn't worried about piranhas, the water was too shallow for their large bodies. My eyes stayed locked on the forest where the raptor had disappeared. That was my main concern right now.

Once the spears were clean, I nodded to myself and headed back to my little hut. I needed to upgrade my living quarters if I wanted to survive the next attack. I looked over at my piles of materials and my stone tools. "I bet those raptors were brought to this area because they heard my chopping yesterday." I mumbled at Killer as he walked into my line of sight. I had felled three large trees yesterday and quite a few smaller ones and spent the day dragging all the wood across the water and up to my little home. That night I had made five newer, not so flimsy spears with the wood. I walked back around and surveyed the dead crimson raptor. "Well, waste not, want not. Don't have to go hunting today I guess." I shrugged and began pulling the raptor towards my little work station.

I grimaced the whole time I gutted and skinned the thing. Then I chopped off chunks of meat, wishing there was a way I could keep the rest of it from spoiling. It seemed such a waste to let it go bad. But there was no way I could eat it all in time.

I continued my work and I noticed how much tanner my skin had become since the day I had woken up in the sand. My hands no longer blistered, but full of calluses and scars, worked more deftly at my tasks. I knew I was a bit stronger too. My days of working hard were becoming more strenuous and yet I was able to keep up.

My thoughts were disrupted by Killer's persistent squawks and I looked over as he ate some berries. I nodded my head jealously at him. I had chosen to try some of the berries a few days ago. Fish and meat weren't enough nutrients. But the black berries I had found completely knocked me out and I had weird hallucinations while I laid there. I wasn't completely unconscious, but I couldn't move. So naturally, I was afraid what any other berries would do to me. So far, I'd found a total of three different kinds. Yellow, blue and the black ones. The blue ones looked really tasty, but then again, so had the black ones.

I'd decided to leave the berries be for the time being. I'd test the other ones on a day I was feeling braver. I sighed and turned back to my work at hand.


	5. Yellow Eyed Demons

When night came, I was finished cooking what meat I figured I could consume before I couldn't trust it any longer. Every time I cooked, I was afraid the scent would attract some unwanted visitors, so I cooked all that I could in one go and hoped it would last me. I had stripped all of the bones clean and tossed the extra meat into the water for the piranhas to devour so I didn't have all that bloody meat just sitting around calling more sharp-toothed crazies around. I cleaned off the bones that could be useful and sat down next to my camp fire with them. I checked the three hunks of meat which were speared through long, straight pieces of wood and buried into the ground at an angle over the fire. It didn't always cook it too well, so I was constantly having to check it and sometimes fight with the heat of the flames as I turned the sticks in an attempt to give the other side of the meat time to cook.

This would be the first time I was going to eat anything besides fish, dodo or one of those sausage things Killer didn't even bat an eye the days I had come home dragging one or two of his kind along with me. I had told him he was too fearless and that was why dodos were extinct. Or well, should have been anyway.

I examined the bones in front of me, wondering how to fashion them into something useful. The two curved and deadly talons must be good for something. The other question was how I would do it. There was nothing in the weird little screen thing that told me or explained to me how to create things out of bones. I sighed and dropped the two talons back into the pile by my feet and stretched out my sore back.

As I lifted my head, my eyes rested on the green glow of the tower that was far off in the distance. Again, like so many times already before, I wondered how far away it really was and if I could make it there. What if there were other people there? Like, human beings that I could actually talk to. I glanced down apologetically at Killer who was huddled up next to my feet on the opposite side from the carnage which was all that was left of the raptor.

"Sorry man, but you're not really good for conversation." I grumbled. He lifted his head and cocked it so that he fixed me with one beady little eye as he peeped softly once and then he slowly drifted back off to sleep. "See? My point exactly." I sighed, but a small smile turned up the corner of my lips anyways.

I checked the meat again and decided it was ready for consumption finally. I pulled one of the sticks out of the ground and leaned it against my seat which was a thick section of a tree that I thought looked rather like it could have been a stump. Then I removed the other two pieces from the fire and carried them into my hut. I hung them both from the ceiling using strips of fibers that hung down specifically for this purpose. I looped the two ropes around the ends of the sticks and walked back out to the fire.

I never let it die out. It had taken me forever and a day to get it started the first time. I didn't relish the idea of having to go through that again. I picked up my meal as I sat back down and touched it cautiously. It was still hot, but if I proceeded carefully, I'd be fine. I was too hungry to wait. I took a careful bite and pulled it loose, sucking in air to cool it down faster.

The meat had a more gamey taste to it than what I was used to. Where the sausage things were fatty, this meat was tougher. I supposed it was because raptors were clearly more muscular. It also wasn't dripping with grease like the dodos did. I had expected them to be like chicken or dry like turkey but they actually reminded me of duck surprisingly. It was weird that I could remember all these animals, remember the sensations of eating them, but I couldn't remember how or with whom. My memory hadn't improved at all since being here on this strange land.

I took another bite as I stared into the fire. I still didn't even remember what my name was. If I had ever even had one. I was about to take another bite when a weird, metallic sounding snarl reached my ears. I jumped up at the same time as Killer and looked around frantically. It had sounded close. Too close for comfort. Killer flapped his useless little wings and puffed up and my face blanched. He only did that when trouble was nearby.

I grabbed him around the neck unceremoniously and launched myself into the hut, dragging his fat body along with me as he squawked defiantly at me. As I slammed the door with a shuddering thud, I tossed Killer and my forgotten meal down on the floor and grabbed one of my spears. It was dark in my little hut, no light came in. I had repaired my wall earlier and thought twice about making windows until I had sturdier materials.

Everything was quiet outside my little shack as I strained my hearing for any sound that might indicate what was out there. I heard tiny footsteps that were lightning fast dart past my hut. A whole group of them and then I heard a loud bellowing and recognized Trois' angry voice as he was awakened from his sleep. There was a series of snaps and small snarls as Trois defended himself against whatever was out there.

I closed my eyes and felt a single tear roll down my cheek as I hoped the triceratops would be ok. My hut shook with each thunderous step Trois took as he continued to grunt and bellow warnings at his assailants. The snarls didn't cease but I did hear a high pitched sound and a small thump hit the ground just outside my door.

I swallowed hard, gripped my spear tightly and pushed open my door. There, in the moonlit painted grass just in front of my little shack was a dark skinned creature with blue stripes and a slightly furry body. It laid there, completely motionless and a huge, bloody hole gaping at me from its side. I glanced around the corner toward the cacophony of snarls and grunts and earth-rattling stomps and my eyes widened. Trois was surrounded by five more of these things, they were small, but seemed to communicate expertly with one another.

But what really sent shivers down my back was their glowing eyes. A golden, terrifying yellow glow emanated from their sockets. Trois lifted his head again and turned quickly to try and attack the one nearest him. As he did, his back left foot came down on the tail of one of the creatures just as it tried to dart away from its large prey. The heads of the little carnivores came to about my midsection. Why they would go after such large prey was beyond me, but still, I worried about the triceratops.

It was too dark for me to discern how Trois was fairing, but what happened next sent all rational thought out of my head. Killer launched himself through the door, past my feet and streaked as fast as his fat, waddling body would take him towards the murderous, glowy-eyed demons. I yelled and launched myself forward. The thought of one of those things closing their teeth around Killer's neck was unbearable to me.

The two closest to me turned to examine the shrill noise that was escaping my mouth and they both crouched, their maws opening menacingly. There were two more that couldn't turn their attention from the enraged Trois and the fifth was still trapped under the triceratops' large foot. It clawed and gnawed furiously on the appendage that held it captive.

I grabbed Killer as I reached him, intending to turn back around and dive back into the safety of my shack, but the two demons closest to me had already sprang forward towards us. I threw Killer back and poised my spear, planting my feet firmly, readying myself for the onslaught.

I jabbed forward at the last moment, impaling one of their small bodies and then ducked down and to the left as the second one launched itself through the air, right at me. I rolled as I hit the ground roughly and flung my spear in an arc, trying to dislodge the dead body.

With a gushing noise and then a small thump, the body came free and I staggered from the lack of weight that was no longer encumbering my weapon. I spun to face the second attacker and my face paled as I saw it sink its teeth into Killer as he tried scratching it with his tiny talons and pecked at it with his worthless beak. I screamed and lunged forward and hurled my spear, knowing I wouldn't be able to run the distance fast enough, I was desperate.

The spear hit my target, but just barely. It grazed the creature's chest, just barely missing Killer in the process. The thing released its prey and jumped backwards with a screech. Before it could recover itself, I was there and I kicked it as hard as I could, using the momentum of my body to power the strike. Pain shot up my leg as I collided with the demon, but it still fell sideways, sprawling out on the ground. I didn't waste my chance.

I bent down, lifted my spear as I continued my charge and, with both hands, slammed the spear head down through the body of the carnivore. I spun around, leaving my spear lodged in the ground, pinning the dying threat in place and grabbed Killer in my arms. I rushed to the shack and disappeared inside, placing the bloody dodo in his little nest.

The quiet, all too familiar snarl made me freeze where I was. I closed my eyes for just a fraction of a second, wishing I was anywhere but here. But I was here. And there was nothing I could do about that except defend myself and my home. My eyes snapped open and I launched sideways, grasping another spear, my movements egged the little demon on and it launched itself at me. I felt its teeth sink into my right shoulder painfully and I cried out. I faintly heard Killer squawk weakly and I knew I had to get the threat away from him. I stumbled out the door as my attacked ripped at my shoulder and its claws dug into my back. I cried out painfully and hunched forward. I grimaced and ran forward, tucking my head down just as I rammed the giant stone pillar with my shoulder, crushing the carnivore between the hard surface and my body.

I heard it wheeze as it released me and hit the ground. It was beginning to stand back up when I stomped down on its midsection and followed through with my spear, stabbing it right through its golden eye. I lifted my hand to my shoulder and felt the wetness that was soaked through my shirt. I pulled my hand away and the blood that covered my hand glistened in the light from the moon. The breeze was calm and soft and felt completely out of place with the whirlwind of emotions that were shooting through me.

I turned around and trudged back to the corner of my hut to see the development with Trois. Another one of the yellow-eyed demons lay there, not dead, but unable to move on its useless legs. Somehow the larger dinosaur had managed to cripple it as he faced off with the last one. I glanced inside my hut, Killer lay there, completely motionless and my heart sank. I felt my eyes get warm and my anger spiked.

Without a weapon in hand, I ran at the small carnivore. My own roar of anger as I charged distracted the small creature and Trois tossed the creature through the air. It gave out a cry of surprise at the triceratops' horns came in contact with it. It hit the ground and I heard the thud but I continued my attack. I was on top of the meat eater before it had a chance to recuperate from its small flight. I kicked its abdomen, ignoring the pain that once again erupted from my foot and traveled up my leg as I collided with its bony body.

I cursed as I stomped my foot down on its neck. I felt cracking with each stamp, "You. Killed. My. Only. Friend!" I roared, punctuating each word with a stomp or a kick. I knew this one wasn't the one that had actually killed my dodo, but that didn't matter to me. They were all the same in my eyes. And now I was utterly alone again on this cursed land. I had no one. I don't know how long I attacked the creature. Long after it was already dead, I knew that much. My mind was getting fuzzy though, making me unable to concentrate any longer. My kicks became slower until my attacks ceased altogether.

A wave of exhaustion hit me. Very suddenly. My legs wobbled as I backed away from the bloody massacre in front of me. I turned away, feeling sick all of a sidden and took a few stumbling steps up the hill toward where Trois was still standing, watching me. I tried to keep walking but my knees refused to hold me up any longer and I collapsed. I lay there, the cool wind breezing past me, blowing strands of my hair around but my shirt, completely soaked through and sticking to my back remained motionless under its gentle caress. I felt a little cold, but I didn't have the energy now to even move my fingers. I laid there, completely motionless as I hoped I wouldn't freeze in the night. My last thought was about a blade of grass that annoyingly decided to go up my left nostril which I could do nothing about, sprawled out on my stomach. It shook back and forth with each breath I took, tickling my nose. My eyes closed as I wished I could move the stupid thing and then… my world went dark.


	6. Not Alone

The first thing I became aware of was how hot I was. My hair was plastered to my neck and my skin felt like it was on fire. I groggily opened my eyes feeling a sense of deja vu. The sun assailed my vision as soon as my eyelids no longer blocked it which made my head pound. I groaned.

"Wha-" I muttered as I tried to remember where I was and what had happened that put me in this state. I pushed myself up and cried out in pain as my shoulder felt like a thousand daggers were slicing it up in unison. My arms lost all strength and I collapsed back down on the ground.

I grimaced and rolled myself onto my side. The one that didn't feel like it was slowly killing me. From that position I pushed myself up until I was sitting, keeping myself propped up with my arm. The sun was high in the sky already and the tiny breeze did nothing to save me from its unforgiving heat.

I looked around and my eyes fell on a dead creature a couple feet from me and as I took in its appearance the events from the previous night rushed back to me. "Little baby demon raptors…" I growled, remembering the noises they made and the way they moved. I pulled my hand from the ground when I decided I was steady enough and I reached up to prod gently at my shoulder. While my hand investigated the damage to my shoulder, my eyes landed on my calf which had healed in a pretty rough way. It was definitely not completely healed yet. But the large scabs were smaller than they had been. I knew they'd still leave their marks though. I was turning into a chew toy for the creatures of this land.

My eyes widened and my hand dropped as I remembered Killer. I staggered up roughly, ignoring the pain that shot through my whole body and I stumbled quickly up the small incline towards my hut. Just a few steps had me breathing pretty roughly. I stopped once I reached the door of my hut which was still open. I peered inside preparing for the worst.

My eyes took a moment to adjust to the darker settings inside the little thatch hut but once they did I locked onto Killer's inert form nestled up exactly where I had put him in his nest.

My heart sank along with my shoulders and I clenched my jaw tightly. I fought back any and all tears that threatened to break free as I looked away, turned my body and sat on my doorstep roughly. Despite my best attempts a few tears broke loose and I cleared my throat while I wiped at my eyes. I was alone again.

Just then a weak sounding peep reached my ears and I whipped my head in the direction which caused the daggers to slice at my shoulder again but I ignored it other than a small wince. Killer laid in his nest still, but his head was lifted and he was studying me with one of his beady little eyes.

Even though my whole body screamed at me to take care of it, I ignored it all as I beamed a smile at the bird. "You idiot!" I cooed loudly as I crawled over to him. I lifted him gently, stood up and carried him out of the hut so I could inspect his wounds.

The baby raptor demon had ripped into the base of his neck where it attached to his shoulders. His feathers were a bloody mess but overall he didn't look in too bad of shape. Relief washed through me as I pet the dumb dodo fondly. "You scared the ever-living fuck out of me." I muttered as I carried him down to the water side with me. Maybe he had passed out like I had. Those creatures seemed to have a tranquilizing bite.

I sat on the shore and undressed, discarding my bloody clothes. I frowned thinking about how much time it was going to take me to make new ones. At least the pants were salvageable. I carefully set Killer down beside the water and he immediately started drinking. Which made me realize just how parched I was myself.

I dunked my hands into the water and rinsed off the blood and grime from the night before and splashed my face before moving up current and cupping up some of the cool crystal clear liquid.

I drank deeply then I began the long and painful process of washing the rest of my body, taking extra care of my shoulder. I kept casting fleeting glances at the tree line across the waterway from us. I had to do something better to protect myself. But I didn't know what. I had no idea how to work with stone. How the hell was I supposed to shape it? Stone was the only thing I could think of that could protect me.

Or maybe… I thought back to the schematics that I had looked over. I pulled up my arm and felt the familiar disorientation that hit me for a moment every time I brought up the screen. I sifted through them and this time I was actually able to see more of them. I looked for the shape of the one I was thinking of and sure enough. The blueprints on how to build spiked walls popped up. I studied it and made note of the materials I would need.

I was about to close the screen when a picture I hadn't seen before showed up. I clicked on it and it was labeled "parasaur saddle." My eyes widened slightly. "Riding dinosaurs? How the literal fuck?" I sputtered. I shook my head as I dropped my arm, dispelling the momentary dizziness. "No. Just no." I murmured roughly at Killer.

I cast one more glance at my body to assess how clean I was and once I decided I couldn't get any cleaner I grabbed my pants, lifted Killer and walked back to my shack. As I donned my makeshift tank top and shorts, I realized how stiff my skin felt on my neck and up the side of my face. I was silently thankful for all the time I had spent out in the sun the past 10 days. Were it not for my already existing tan, my neck and face would probably be all blistered by now rather than just a little sore. Thankfully the rest of my body had been covered.

I sighed as I saw the wasted piece of meat that I had discarded on the ground in my haste last night. My stomach rumbled as I realized I hadn't even gotten to eat last night and judging by the height of the sun it was already midday. So I had missed breakfast too. I shook my head as I pulled both of the sticks free from their straps and bit into the meat feverishly. "Could use some salt." I muttered in between bites to Killer who just ignored me.

I was onto the second slab of meat in no time and I stared at the ground, thinking about what my day had in store for me. I had plenty of wood left over from my work yesterday, but even that much wasn't going to be enough. I sighed, wondering how long it would actually take me to finish the wall.

I popped the last bite into my mouth and felt a little more refreshed. I took a deep breath, pushed my hands against my knees and forced myself to stand. If I didn't get started now, I never would. I couldn't let near death experiences get to me. That was my life now. Maybe it always had been, and I just didn't remember it. I dropped my spit sticks on the ground beside the campfire and strode over to the nearest of the dead creatures. If they hadn't been sitting out in this blasted heat all morning, I probably would have tried to salvage some of the meat from them for later. But I wasn't going to trust it.

I bent down and grabbed a hold of the little baby raptor demon's legs and pulled it to the water's edge. It was small and not too awfully heavy so I was able to toss it into the deep water for the piranhas. It took a matter of seconds before the first piranha descended on the free meal. I think they were getting used to me feeding them.

I repeated the process with four more of the dead creatures, leaving them lying on the water's edge though so as not to over feed the greedy fish. If I ever needed to cross the water on this side of my little island, maybe I could use the dead things to lure the piranhas away? It was a thought I decided I'd flush out later.

However though, when I got to the last one I stopped in my tracks. It was still alive, but completely crippled and it just laid there, staring at me. I noticed suddenly that its eyes weren't glowing and though it was probably my imagination, they looked sad. I bit my lip, unable to bring myself to kill it when it was so helpless. I took a step closer towards it, expecting it to lash out at me but it didn't. I chewed on my lower lip, contemplating how to deal with this little problem but no matter how much I reminded myself about my shoulder and what they did to Killer and Trois, I just couldn't kill it.

I glared at it as I crouched down beside it, "This is what separates humans from assholes like you." I grumbled and tentatively reached towards it. The creature watched me cautiously and, paying extra attention to the little demon's teeth, I gripped it from behind and pulled it as gently as I could towards the opposite side of the stone pillar. It made clicking noises and quiet growls, but it hung its head, looking utterly defeated and pitiful. I left it laying there in the shade as I walked back around towards my camp hoping this wouldn't come back to bite me in the ass.

I headed over to my huge stack of collected wood pushing all thoughts of the little baby raptor demon from my mind. I rubbed my hands together and bent to pick up a large section from a trunk that I would be able to fashion into at least six large spikes. Just as my hands touched the wood a sound caught my attention and I froze.

My eyes widened at the voice of another human. It was too far away for me to pick out the actual words but it was unmistakably a man. I straightened up immediately and strained my ears. The voice was on the mainland, farther up the coast to my right. The area I had traveled down my first day here before I'd found my little haven that wasn't so much a haven anymore.

I took a fleeting step towards the voice before my senses rushed back to me. My excitement and disbelief almost had me running pelmel onto the mainland without any way of protecting myself. I spun in place, dashed into the hut, grabbed one of my spears and pointed a finger demandingly at Killer. "Stay," I commanded then rushed back out as quickly as I could. I wanted to find that voice before I couldn't hear it anymore.

I sprinted down the little incline and through the shallow section of water. The cool water splashed up my legs and soaked my shorts but I didn't slow down. I gripped my spear tightly, set my shoulders and plunged straight into the thick lining of trees. Once I made it about twenty feet or so, pushing past huge ferns and dodging around large tree trunks, I finally slowed to a stop. I glanced around me, taking in my surroundings.

The canopy of the trees was so thick it was a wonder there was as much foliage as there was. The sun's rays gleamed off the taller trees' leaves but the light rarely made it all the way to the ground. The soil was damp and I could feel my feet sink slightly with each step. The air was thick with moisture and even though I was in the shade, I still felt the warmth of the day pressing in on me. The breeze was almost non existent here and the air was stifling and humid. Within minutes my clothes were soaked through and clung to me everywhere they touched. I ignored my discomfort and listened intently again for the voice I had heard.

The only sounds I heard were the treetops rustling above me, distant bellows from grazing herbivores, calls from excited little monkeys and buzzing from various different insects. I swallowed a gulp of air and my hands tightened on my spear. _'Please, please don't let me have lost them…'_ I pleaded silently, my eyes casting around in all directions. The deep green of the forested area was overwhelming. It all seemed to blend together while all standing out at the same time.

There were small patches of colors here and there that were so vibrantly bright it was like they demanded attention. A loud buzzing noise caught my attention to my right and I looked just in time to see a huge dragonfly dart around a tree and zoom right past me. My eyes bugged out of my head and I had to fight to hold back a shriek. I hate bugs! Can't stand them and their creepy, crawly disgusting little faces with their extra appendages and gross little hairs.

I shivered to try and free myself of the scary image the dragonfly left in my mind and I forced myself to refocus on my task at hand. After a few minutes of standing there with nothing but sweat soaked clothes, heavy breathing and a sense of helplessness I began to wonder if I had actually heard the voice at all. Maybe it had just been my subconscious hallucinating because I was so tired of being alone? I felt myself frowning and my shoulders slumped slightly as I began to turn around to head back home.

I made it a few steps when-

"Oy!" A male voice called out from somewhere behind me. "Get your butts moving! We need that metal. Badly." I spun back around, anxiously hoping to see someone there. I rushed off in the direction the voice had come from. I was heading up a hill and every now and then I'd slip on the damp ground and I'd catch myself on my hands and knees.

"Why didn't Guardian come with? The fuck?" a second voice grumbled and I grinned, noticing immediately that it was a female. I was speeding up the steep incline as fast as I could, I felt like I had left my lungs behind. My chest hurt from my heavy breaths that weren't getting enough oxygen and my already sore body was screaming at me to give it a rest but I pushed all of that away and focused solely on my trek up the hill.

"You know Guardian. He doesn't like-" I never got to hear what it was that this Guardian person didn't like because I burst through the trees into a clearing where three people were standing, each holding what I saw were pickaxes in their hands. The man who had been speaking stared at me with his mouth open, his unfinished sentence lost in his surprise.

"Hold the phone," said the girl as her eyes widened when she saw me.

I stood there, eyes almost as wide as my mouth was open as I gasped for air. I probably looked like a crazed person but I didn't care. Human beings. Real life human beings stood before me. I tried to speak. To say anything to these miracles in front of me but I couldn't catch my breath enough to.

"Would you look at that." Said the guy who I had interrupted. He was tall with long brown hair that he tied at the base of his neck.

"Where did you come from?" the girl asked me and my eyes landed on her. She had really short orange hair that looked like it had been cut off by an unruly three year old with scissors.

"She's hot," the lanky guy in the back stated unceremoniously. He had medium length blonde hair that was slightly wavy.

"And you're a pig," answered the girl without taking her eyes off me. She took a step towards me. "How long you been on the Ark?"

Her question confused me and I tilted my head, still panting but I managed a few words. "Ten… Ten days." I gasped out, crouched over and holding my knees. I wanted to ask what she meant by "the Ark" but the words wouldn't come.

A low whistle came from the brown haired guy. "Are you alone?"

I nodded.

"She's got brains then." came the woman's voice again. "That could be useful." The other two nodded their agreement.

"The name's Badge." said the gruff looking guy with the long hair. "That's Hart," he gestured towards the woman. "And Trick." He pointed his thumb over his shoulder at the lanky boy who winked at me. I nodded at them all enthusiastically.

When silence spread between us all again for a few moments Badge raised an eyebrow at me. "Well, you got a name or not?" he looked at me like one would look at someone they pitied dearly.

I shook my head, "Not." My breath was finally catching up to me.

"Any memories?" Hart asked. When I shook my head again she didn't look surprised. She shrugged at me, "It's like that for everyone," she consoled.

"Yea, we all either named ourselves or gained names from other people." Trick grinned good naturedly at me.

"Any ideas?" Badge asked me and my eyes widened. That was answer enough for him. "Don't worry your pretty little head over it. Come on guys, let's take her back to base. We'll have to get Guardian his metal some other time. I think he'll have more interest in this anyways," he muttered as he strapped his pick to his side and walked towards me. "Come on lass," he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me against him. I sighed, feeling safer than I had in days and finally free from the loneliness.

"Hey! That's not fair. What if I wanted to hold her?" Trick whined, but I could hear amusement in his voice.

"You smell bad." Hart quipped and I felt Badge's side rumble as he chuckled next to me. I grinned and fell comfortably into step beside him.


	7. Friends and Things

We headed down the hill through the dense canopy of trees. I still carried my spear, but I held it more loosely now. I couldn't believe it. I actually felt safe. I was giddy with excitement as I studied the group. Badge walked alongside me, his arm still draped protectively over my shoulders. I covertly cast glances up at him, quietly ignoring the discomfort his arm caused my raw shoulder. He was good looking and muscular. His jaw was covered in stubble but it wasn't very long. A few shorter hairs that didn't reach his ponytail draped down along the edges of his face. Every few steps or so a tiny droplet of sweat mixed with the humidity in the air would drip off the ends of those strands. His eyes were as brown as his hair. His gaze was sharp and calculating. He looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties. But I honestly couldn't tell.

I glanced over at Hart then who was walking ahead of us with Trick at her side. He kept turning around and winking in my direction, earning a punch in the arm from Hart every time she caught him doing it. I figured they were probably a couple. Hart's hair reminded me of a sunset. It was orange but streaks where the sun had bleached it almost looked golden. And she had striking green eyes to go with it. Her nose stuck out to me though. Every time she turned to look at Trick, the length and how pointy it was caught my attention. Apparently I wasn't the only one since I noticed how Trick always addressed her as "Pinnochio." I giggled each time.

Trick caught me almost every time I was studying him because of how often he felt the need to look at me. He kept trying to bring me into the conversations they were having too which I appreciated. His blonde hair was almost unnaturally pale and he had hazel eyes that were almond shaped. Completely clean-shaven and a slightly rounded but still chiseled face. Bronze skin from hours spent in the sun. Model was the first thought that came to my mind. Even in the rough climate we were in now, Trick was drop-dead gorgeous. But he did have a scar on his right temple that spread down to the corner of his mouth that marred his nearly flawless complexion.

I wondered briefly how he'd obtained that scar and hundreds of different ideas popped into my head. All of them containing large, carnivorous dinosaurs with sharp teeth and bad attitudes. Deciding it would be rude to ask him, I kept my mouth shut and just listened to the friendly banter between the two of them.

"We'll have to continue that bet tomorrow," Trick grinned at Hart. "You lucked out today. Saved by the newbie."

Hart returned his grin with a cocky smile of her own, "Sounds to me like you're relieved she showed up. Though I don't blame you, losing to a girl would be pretty embarrassing for you." She looked ahead of them and kept walking.

"Ha! You want a pillow?" he made a big show of rolling his eyes. When Hart shot him a questioning look he smirked. "You know. To lay your head on since you keep dreaming."

Hart scoffed. "You're such a dumbass," but despite her words she laughed genuinely and shook her head.

"There's no way you could mine more metal than me." Trick continued the argument. I was caught off guard when he turned and asked me, "Isn't that right newbie?" he winked at me. I caught Hart glance back at me. I looked between the two then shrugged.

"I'd put my money on Hart." I smiled at the accusatory look Trick shot me.

"But-" he began but was interrupted by Badge.

"I agree. All Hart would have to do is glare at the node and the metal would harvest itself." The tall man said, his face completely serious. He looked down at me and whispered, "Don't get on her bad side." his warning was accompanied by a good-natured wink and I found myself giggling again.

"Psh." Trick waved us off. "You'll see." he promised, still grinning.

Their playful banter had me grinning ear to ear.

"What's that smile for?" Trick asked me and I bit my bottom lip as I looked back over at him. I just blurted out the truth.

"I've been so lonely. Being around you guys is like a breath of fresh air. I thought I was alone."

Trick fell into step beside me and I glanced up at Hart to see her reaction but she didn't even look back at us. She looked completely indifferent. Maybe I had been wrong earlier assuming they were together. I shrugged inwardly, deciding it wasn't any of my business.

"Where you been holed up?" Trick's question pulled me back to reality.

"Uhm, a little island that's just off the coast. It has a tall stone pillar on it." I was about to continue, but Trick cut in.

"Does that grumpy old trike still live there?" he grinned at me and I was caught off guard by both his striking eyes and the fact that he knew exactly where I was talking about.

"Y-yea." I stammered, wishing he'd back away a little bit so he wouldn't see how I reacted to his closeness.

"That trike wasn't grumpy." Hart broke into our conversation. "You can't try to tickle a trike and expect it to enjoy it," the orange haired girl said without looking back at us.

My eyes widened when I comprehended what she said and my eyes shot back up to Trick's face and he winked mischievously at me. "Wow…" I tried to imagine Trick poking and prodding at Trois looking for a ticklish spot and I burst out laughing.

"Yea, you think it's funny now? You should have been there when it happened." Badge's voice cut through my giggles. When I looked up at him, he nodded and kept smiling. "Imagine this idiot," he gestured at Trick, "running around screaming and throwing grass and berries at a trike, calling it a good dinosaur and telling it to "sit" and "stay." All the while the Trike is doing its darndest to chase him off the island, coming close to catching him a few times." Badge was shaking his head and grinning wide as he recounted the memory.

I laughed and looked back at Trick trying to picture it and he shrugged. "Good times…" he sighed with a smirk.

I shook my head disbelievingly, my cheeks feeling tired from all the smiling and laughing I was doing. I welcomed that tiny discomfort. "But tickling it? Seriously?" I laughed some more.

"Quite literally," Badge nodded. "He even went far enough to say "goo chee goo chee goo"." Hart, Trick and I all burst out laughing hearing those words come out of Badge's mouth. He gave me a sheepish look as we all laughed at his expense.

The trees began to thin and the ground began to even out so I looked around, suddenly realizing exactly what was happening. "So where are we going?" I asked suddenly, remembering back to Badge saying something about taking me back to base.

"We have a fort up the East coast." Badge said in answer.

My eyes widened a little. "With walls?" I asked hopefully.

"Obviously." Hart responded.

Badge was a little less blunt with his answer. "Stone walls actually. We have an enclosed yard too so we can still enjoy being outdoors and not have to worry about those pesky carnotaurs that breed out in the forest behind our base."

I stumbled, tripping over myself at his words. When he slowed to a stop to catch me, he glanced down at me with a lifted eyebrow. Seeing the look on my face made him chuckle. "No need to worry lass. We travel by water. We won't run into any of them."

Even with his assurances I still felt like my legs were jelly but I forced myself to walk forward. "Can you swim?" I heard Trick ask and I just nodded. "Okay, I was just checking to make sure I wouldn't have to jump in and pull you out if you fell off the raft." I could hear that he was smiling, but I didn't look up at him. His joke did nothing to ease my apprehension.

"Seriously?" Badge grumbled and I felt myself get jostled a little as he reached out and punched Trick in the arm. "We won't let anything happen to ya." his arm was back around my shoulders and he tightened his grip for a moment in a half hug. I grimaced as he caused my shoulder to throb painfully.

"You alright?" Trick asked and I nodded up at him. "What happened? If you don't mind my asking," his eyes cast back over my shoulder and I shrugged.

"I fought off some crazy little things. I don't know what they were." I muttered, my thoughts jumping back to Killer, wondering if I'd be able to go back and get him some time.

"What did they look like?" Hart asked, finally looking back at us.

I bit my bottom lip for a moment, trying to think of how to describe them. I decided just to go with my nickname for them. "They looked like little baby demon raptors. Their eyes glowed creepily too."

Trick was grinning though he nodded approvingly. "That description is perfect," he shook his head, I was afraid I had done a bad job but Hart spoke up then.

"Troodons. That's what they're called. How many did you run into?"

"I didn't run into them… they decided to visit my little encampment in the middle of the night. Six of them were trying to take Trois down." I didn't realise I had called the triceratops by my nickname for him.

"I thought you said you were alone?" Badge asked and I looked at him curiously.

"I was."

"Who's Trois?" Hart asked and realization hit me.

"Oh. Yea, That's what I nicknamed the…" I tried to remember the short term for triceratops they had used, "trike that's there."

"You named it?" Trick lifted an eyebrow at me.

"Yea. I got along with him as long as we stayed out of each other's ways. I got tangled up with the… troodons," the word felt weird to me, but I pushed on anyways, "because he was fighting them off and…" I clamped my mouth shut. I was just about to call Killer my friend. How lame would that be? To admit I was friends with a dodo. How pitifully alone had I been to seek companionship from a bird? A dumb one at that.

But then again… I remembered the way Killer tried saving me from any dangers. Dumb or not, we had a friendship of some sort obviously.

"And…?" Trick urged me to continue.

I shrugged. "My dodo ran out to attack the Troodons and well… I needed to save him…" I trailed off and saw Hart's incredulous look.

"You risked yourself for a worthless dodo?" her words came out a little harsh.

"I hope he tasted good…" Trick shook his head looking dumbfounded.

Great. Now they all think I'm a nutcase. But even so, I pressed on. "I didn't eat him." I met Trick's look defiantly. "He's my pet. My friend. And his name is Killer."

Trick stared at me, his face completely blank. Then, as if on cue he and Hart both burst out laughing. I felt my face get red but I refused to hide it which I was feeling a strong urge to do just then. Then I noticed Badge was being abnormally quiet and I dared a look up at him. He looked like he was deep in thought.

"It's a good thing you found us." Trick left his meaning hanging in the air between us, unspoken but clear to me. I chewed my lower lip, suddenly feeling a little defensive.

"I was doing just fine on my own," I fully meant it but it came out a little weak sounding.

Hart made a sarcastic noise in the back of her throat. "Clearly." she muttered.

"Knock it off." Badge's commanding voice made all three of us look up at him. His eyes met mine, "you say it ran towards the troodons to attack them?"

I couldn't distinguish any sarcasm or disbelief in his gaze. Only curiosity and that same pensive look he had earlier. I nodded softly. "He always tries to protect me." I said thinking back to all the times the dodo had tried to jump in the way of danger for me. The most recent times being with the raptors then the troodons. But before then he had faced off with a compy which I had ended up kicking so hard it landed in the water. It never came back. And one of those gooey tar spitter things once got so flustered because when it had been threatening me, Killer had come up behind it and started pecking at it madly.

"Hmmm."

"What are you thinking?" Hart asked. I was surprised to see how she genuinely respected Badge.

He cocked a brow as if it should be obvious. "Since when have you ever seen a dodo run towards danger?"

Hart looked off, her face scrunched up and a huge question mark painted her features.

"Maybe it's mentally ill?" Trick offered.

Badge shook his head. "I think she figured out how to tame it."

Now it was my turn to wear a question mark. All I had done was fed the thing berries here and there and talk to it while I worked. It wasn't anything special.

"Huh…" Trick's voice was oddly reverent.

"So what? Big friggen deal. It's just a stupid dodo." Hart said, sounding annoyed about something.

Badge just sighed. "But it's still progress," he said matter of factly.

I felt like a science experiment suddenly. I glanced up at Hart, scowling as she distanced herself from the rest of us.

"Don't worry," Trick whispered to me, leaning dangerously close to my face. "She's just jealous because she's been trying to tame dinosaurs for weeks." I let out a quiet "hmm," as I stared back into Trick's eyes. I was struck speechless again, caught by the intensity of his hazel eyes. My mouth felt dry but thankfully Badge pulled me back to my senses before I could say anything embarrassing as he shook my shoulders.

"Say hello to Juraship Park." I raised my right eyebrow at the pun but my eyes followed his gaze and my mouth went dry.

"Is that really safe?" I blurted out, studying the raft from a distance.

Trick made a choking noise and I looked back over at him.

"I beg your pardon. I'm an amazing builder. Nothing I've built has failed us yet." he said, puffing his chest out. I met Badge's eyes, inquiring. He nodded solemnly and I made a pained face as I returned my gaze back to the raft. It was a good size. I could see Trois plus my little hut fitting on it comfortably. But I didn't ever plan on testing that. Trick jogged ahead, leaving Badge and I trailing behind. He passed Hart, smacking her bottom as he passed her. She swatted at him but missed him by inches.

He reached the raft just as I started to feel sand mix in with the grass under my feet. He jumped up onto the raft and rocked it playfully as he turned back to face me. "Almost impossible to tip because of the planned distribution of weight I incorporated. State of the art rigging and wind power harnessing mechanisms."

I found myself smiling at his ridiculous, not to mention completely made up, terminology. I was about to tell Hart that I agreed with her earlier statement about how he was a dumbass but a vibration reached me from the sand I was standing in and my head snapped around.

Immediately my eyes alighted on a brontosaurus the size of a mountain. I had already seen these massive creatures since waking up on the sand that first day, but neverthiis closely before... I tended to keep myself well away from their gigantic forms. Badge was already looking up at the monstrous dinosaur himself and he sighed. "Beautiful, ain't she?"

"She?" I asked.

"Look," he pointed and I followed where he was pointing with my eyes. Sure enough I found a huge egg nestled in between a couple large stones.

"Whoah…" I said breathlessly. I looked back up at the long necked dinosaur with renewed interest. She was watching us humans with curiosity and behind her I saw another head lift up from behind a line of trees. A third one followed closely behind it. It was slightly taller and broader looking than the other two.

"That's the male. Watching over his little family." Badge's voice was full of a softness that bordered on pure reverence.

For the first time since being in this land I was seeing the beauty that until that moment had been hidden to me, shadowed by the looming dangers I faced daily. "I had no idea…" I murmured, awed by the view in front of me.

"Mmm." Badge hummed. No more words were needed as we both sat there and admired the nature of this land. No matter how impossible it still seemed to me, this was my world now.


	8. To Sea the Beauty

"Alright, come on dreamers," Trick's voice pulled us back to reality. Badge and I looked at each other, sharing fond smiles with each other.

"Let's get you to safety." He offered and I nodded. I hesitated a moment before taking Trick's hand and letting him pull me up onto the raft. It barely rocked with my weight added and I noticed (with immense relief) that Trick must have really thrown his all into getting the boat to rock the way it had been. Badge jumped up behind me and headed to the rudder that sat at the back of the raft. Trick picked up a thick board and used it to push off the beach. I felt a little unsteady so I dropped to my hands and knees in the center of Juraship Park, dropping my spear beside me. I grinned again for point two seconds at the name before the movement of the raft pushed all those thoughts from my head.

After a short while of Trick running around, adjusting the sails and tying ropes in various places, he looked at me and cocked his head. "I thought you said you could swim?" he asked, studying my stiff posture, white knuckles and probably super pale face.

"I can…" I paused, shooting an accusatory look at the depths of the water. "It's more the thought of what exactly is in the water below us," my calf itched as I remembered my encounter with the piranhas. I didn't fancy the idea of going through that again.

"Just don't think about it." Hart said. She was sitting on the corner of the raft at the front, the breeze blew her short wisps of hair all around.

"Yea, you don't wanna know what's down there, that's for sure." Trick said, his voice was dark and brooding, but his eyes still gleamed with amusement.

I shot him a glare. "Thanks," I said dryly.

He beamed a smile at me, "Anytime!" he winked before heading towards the front of the raft again and adjusting something on the mast.

"Nothing to worry about lass," came Badge's calming voice and I forced myself to relax a little more. My eyes practically bugged out of my head when I saw Hart draping her legs off the side of the raft and letting them be swallowed up by the deep blue water. I was too freaked by the images of giant swimming monsters pulling her under to notice her smile at first. But once her upturned lips registered in my brain I allowed myself to look away from her, out to the water where she was gazing.

Something kept breaking the surface of the water and it took me only a couple of seconds to realize that it was more than one thing. The dorsal fins of three or four creatures kept breaking the surface as they slowly swam alongside the raft. Badge must have noticed where I was looking, "Ichthies, we call them." I cast him a quick glance. "They're ichthyosaurs. Think of them like prehistoric dolphins." His eyes stayed on course as he explained it to me.

"Water dinosaurs?" I mumbled.

"They're actually not dinosaurs. Sure they lived around the same time as some dinosaurs, but they're not classified as dinosaurs themselves." his voice took on a preaching tone.

I narrowed my eyes and looked back at him. "You sound like you know a lot."

"Must have been something I was good at before waking up here. I can classify and name most of these creatures. Of course…" he paused, looking like he was trying to puzzle something out. "Not all of these creatures actually existed." he finished, murmuring quietly.

"That we know of." Trick jumped in. "I still hold to my theory."

"Which is?" I asked wryly, thinking this was gonna be good.

Hart groaned, "Here he goes. Now you did it."

Trick puffed out his chest, "Aliens." He said in a dramatic voice. I just stared at him while he gave me a look that ''aliens' should be self explanatory. "Obviously," he began, sighing, "the aliens knew the dinosaurs and other creatures were going to go extinct. So…" he gestured around him, "they created this paradise for them!" he lifted his eyebrows at me, urging me to agree with him.

I just kept staring at him. He sighed again. "Well, everything in this land was extinct, or so our broken memories all told us. So that just means one thing…" he paused, trying to draw out the conversation with more dramatics. "Humans went extinct! We are the select few that were chosen to be saved!" he threw his arms wide and bowed.

"I think he ate too many narcos before we found him…" Hart grumbled. I wondered for a moment what narcos were. I decided I'd ask later.

I met Trick's look with a skeptical one of my own. "You're high."

"I wish." he mumbled, grinning still. "Magic would be the only other explanation… And how believable is that?"

"Then why erase our memories?" I asked.

"So we wouldn't remember our past lives… Obviously something we were doing as a species led to our extinction." he spoke with so much conviction, I almost wanted to believe him. Almost. When I didn't respond he continued, "That's why we were given a new chance, with a clean slate and new challenges." his voice took on an awed tone.

"Got all that from a missing memory, did ya?" I asked in false mockery.

"Got any better ideas?" he quipped.

"Someone's tormenting us." I grumbled, my hand involuntarily reaching up to my shoulder. That quieted down the conversation and immediately I felt like I was the group's certified buzzkill. I was about to try to get Badge talking again when Hart's voice broke in.

"Get to land!" she yelled, standing up and pointing. Badge immediately started steering towards the land without even looking at what she was pointing at. Trick got busy adjusting the sail, loosening some ropes, tying others. Hart joined him, the urgency of their movements had me frowning. I looked out toward where Hart had gestured and my eyes widened. A giant, smooth surface that could have passed for a mini island if it wasn't moving was headed right for our boat. With closer inspection I could see tiny ridges down the middle of it.

I felt useless, not knowing what I could do to help. "Hold tight lass." I heard Badge say as he finally glanced behind us to judge the distance between our raft and the giant thing. "Brace for impact guys! It's going to catch us." His voice was surprisingly calm, all things considered.

"Hart! Pull that corner back down! Learn how to tie woman!" Trick yelled and Hart surprisingly jumped to do his bidding without any sarcastic comments or remarks. I turned back around just in time to see the thing lift it's huge head out of the water. Whale was the first thing that came to my mind, but it didn't look like any whale I'd ever seen.

"It's about to reach us!" I yelled out, quickly glancing toward land to see how far we were from it.

"We got this!" Trick yelled, grinning as he stood at his post. I kept my eyes on the whale thing, Moby Dick flashing in my memory. I was watching it as it dunked its head just behind our raft and rammed us from underneath. I lowered myself so that I was laying on my stomach while holding in a gasp. The wood creaked and protested against the force of the hit but the raft held tight despite the rough rocking.

"Whoo!" Trick called out, acting like he was having the time of his life.

Another hard thump hit us from the side, causing the boat to lurch to the right but at least it still stayed firmly upright. My confidence in Trick's engineering grew a little. "We're reaching the shelf!" Hart called out.

Was that good or bad? I had no idea. The whale thing was following right behind us again. With a strong push of its tail it lifted itself up and came down on the back of the raft, knocking Badge off the rudder. "Bloody bastard," he grumbled as he righted himself and gripped the wood again, positioning it back into place. I was flabbergasted at the fact that he didn't even seem phased at the fact that the giant creature had just touched him.

"It's slowing down." I said, slightly out of breath despite my doing pretty much nothing during the whole ordeal.

"It can't follow us onto the shelf without beaching itself." Trick grinned as he walked up next to me and primly flicked Moby Dick off with both hands. "Catch us now you oversized sardine!" he grinned down at me. "See? Nothin' to worry about." he winked then continued walking, patting Badge on the shoulder as he walked passed him towards a small chest that was strapped down on the back corner.

"Coming with, Pinnochio?" he asked distractedly as he opened the trunk and rummaged through it. He pulled out a crude pair of flippers and my eyes widened.

"You're going IN the water?!" I gasped out.

Trick looked back at me and gave me a look that made me feel like a child. "Obviously. I need to check for damage. Don't wanna continue on and run into the Loch Ness monster with a damaged ship," he turned away from my stunned expression and I looked towards Badge with buggy eyes. I probably looked like a fish out of water.

"No such thing," he assured me and I glared at Trick who was grinning slyly, completely bare chested now and sporting the flippers he had pulled out of the chest. He stepped back, dropping off the side of the raft and I turned to look at Hart to see if she was going to follow him, but she just kept looking around us like she was surveying the water around us.

"Is he safe down there?" I asked no one in particular as I crawled to the edge he had disappeared over.

"As safe as one can be in this land. Hart is keeping on guard, as am I." Badge said distractedly as he looked around us. I looked down in the water, leaning forward as far as I dared to try and catch a glimpse of Trick. Nothing but clear blue water and a sandy floor several feet down.

"See anything out that way Hart?" Badge asked.

"Just the pod of Ichthies from earlier heading this way. They probably saw Trick and are coming to investigate," she responded, her tone almost bored sounding.

"What was that thing that attacked us?" I spoke up when they fell silent again.

"Leedsichthys. We found some tablets with etched notes on them of quite a few of the residents in this land. The one we found about the giant fish tagged it as leedsichthys conviviumbrosia… but I always knew them as leedsichthys problematicus…" Badge rambled as he looked around. I had no idea what he was talking about.

"Well…" I grinned mischievously, "I can see why they were named that… they're pretty problematic." I chuckled at my lame little joke.

Badge's eyes crinkled at the corners as his lips turned up in amusement. "They're large fish though they look large enough-"

"To be Moby Dick?" I interjected. "Also a fitting name since they're obviously dicks." I grumbled and Badge chuckled. Our conversation was interrupted as Trick came up for breath. I nearly jumped out of my skin when he popped up beside me, inhaling roughly.

"So?" Badge asked while I tried to catch my own breath that had nothing to do with holding it from being underwater.

"No serious damage done. Nothing I can't fix once we get back to base." he said nonchalantly.

"So… We can leave now?" I asked.

"Nope!" Trick said slyly as he grabbed my arm and yanked me off the side of the raft. I yelped as I felt myself tumbling head-first off the raft and into the water. I clamped my eyes shut tight and automatically held my breath as soon as I felt the cool water hit my face. I kicked wildly, trying to right myself and get back to fresh air, barely feeling the strong pair of arms that were fighting through my frantic movements to lift me back to the surface.

Soon as my head was free of the water, I took a deep breath, shaking my head to get the water out of my eyes. I was aware of the laughter that was coming from someone beside me as I finally opened my eyes. "The fuck?-" I began when I noticed he was still holding onto my arm, supporting me. I yanked out of his grasp, prepared to support myself but he just reached for me again.

"Look," he said, his laughter gone but amusement still sparkled in his eyes.

"I don't want to do anyth-" I began but he spun me around and pointed. My eyes widened at the four things that were circling us tentatively. Suddenly I didn't mind being in Trick's grasp as I tried to distance myself from the creatures and bumped into his chest. His powerful legs did all the work to keep us afloat and then something plopped in the water beside us. My head snapped in the direction as Trick reached out and grabbed a pair of goggles. I looked up and saw Badge smiling at me, presumably being the one to blame for the appearance of the goggles. "No." I said simply, knowing what he was thinking.

"Ok." Trick said, I felt him smiling behind me. He tossed the goggles back up to Badge. "You heard her, she doesn't need goggles."

"That's not-!" I began.

"Deep breath!" Trick warned just before he placed his hand on top of my head and pushed me under. I had just enough time to inhale before I was submerged again. My eyes closed tight and I kicked again to head to the surface but Trick's hold on my arm held me captive. He shook me softly and my inability to see anything but the back of my lids was stressing me out. Slowly I forced my eyes open, the cold water hit them and I blinked roughly, trying to expel the water from them. After a few seconds though my eyes got used to the new temperature and foreign water and my gaze moved to the nearest thing to me. Which was Trick.

His medium length hair was swaying in the current and he smiled at me. I glared at him which made his grin widen. Apparently my glare wasn't that intimidating when I was squinting through water. He pulled me closer again and spun me away from him, pointing past me and at the Ichthies which were closer now. Keeping his hand clamped around my arm he swam forward, toward the creatures. I was pulled along beside him.

The nearest one, a deep green color with a yellow stripe up its side skittered away but the salmon pink colored one that had been behind it boldly swam up to us. Trick caught my eye and gestured for me to reach out and touch it. I shook my head and he rolled his eyes. He moved behind me and grabbed my other arm, lifting it despite my weak protests and he lifted my hand to the pink ichthy. It felt a little rubbery to me and it seemed to react to my touching it. It swam forward, bumping into my side as it swam past us. I turned to watch it swim away, but it turned around and came back, bumping into Trick's back playfully which made him press into me softly.

I felt his chest rumbling with held in laughter as he looked at my face. The green one that had swam away from us at first joined the pink one's playful gestures, apparently deciding that we weren't dangerous. There was another green colored one, but it was a softer, lighter green and the fourth was gray in color. It was also smaller than the other three. It must be a younger one I noted silently.

The gray one swam up to us while the other three larger ones kept swimming around us, bumping into us occasionally while we'd reach out and run our hands down their bodies. I was getting short on air and knew I'd need to surface soon but I held out long enough to rub the young gray one under its elongated chin. It stayed still while I rubbed its skin, but then it shuddered quickly then burst off at an insane speed, excitedly circling around us. I smiled widely, spinning around to watching the little creature. Then I felt Trick's hand on my arm again and I met his gaze, his smile was genuine and didn't hold any of his usual snarkiness in it. He pointed up, questioning me with his eyes and I nodded. We both swam up, the Ichthies coming with us.

Soon as my head broke free, I blinked quickly a few times, giggles escaping my lips. "See? We're not being tormented." I barely heard Trick's soft words but I glanced at him. Was that his plan from the start? To help me have a little fun and not wallow on the doom and gloom? I offered a little nod and his grin grew again. The small gray ichthy swam up to my side and pushed itself under my arm. I giggled again and rubbed it affectionately. They seemed to enjoy getting petted. I smiled at the little creature sweetly then heard Badge clear his throat.

Trick and I both looked up at him, "Shall we continue?" he asked, a soft smile on his lips.

I cast one more wistful look at the Ichthies and then nodded. Soon as I did, Trick released my arm and pulled himself up onto the raft, leaving me floating there by myself. He turned around, water dripping from every inch of his body. He reached down towards me, offering his hand to me. My eyes traveled over his body, clearly used to hard labor and he definitely wasn't a stranger to spending time out in the sun. I didn't realize I was staring until Trick called out to me.

"Yo." He said and I snapped out of it, looking up into his face. He was grinning at me knowingly and my face heated up. I clenched my jaw and placed my hand in his as I looked away from him. He lifted me out of the water with ease and soon as my feet were planted firmly on deck I pulled my hand from his and made myself look busy by squeegeeing the water off my bare skin and then when I ran out of skin I started wringing out my makeshift clothes.

"Here," Badge said and I looked up questioningly. He tossed Trick's shirt to him and my eyes met Trick's again.

He smirked and dropped it. "I think I'll leave it off for now," he said cockily, shooting me a suggestive look. I rolled my eyes, ignoring the fact that my face felt like it was igniting again. I turned away from him and walked over towards Badge and sat down beside him.

Trick went back to working on the sail and all the many ropes that went with it. I watched him work, telling myself that it was because I wanted to learn how to work the raft for possible future purposes.

"Won't that leed-Moby-thingie just come after us again?" I asked Badge.

"We're going to stay on the edge of the shelf," he said simply.

"Why don't you guys always stay in the shallows?"

"There are rocks and stuff that we have to navigate around. It slows our journey down," he responded. I liked asking him questions. He didn't make me feel stupid.

"Wouldn't you rather be slow and safe than dead?" he looked down at me then.

"It was unfortunate that the first time you rode with us we ran into one of those. They're usually rare, only coming in towards land to mate and give birth. Otherwise, we don't usually ever see one," his reassurances didn't really make me feel like I wanted to give it another chance, but I nodded anyways.

I looked out at the vast expanse of water in front of us and sighed. The sun was much lower than it had been when I first chased Badge's voice into the forest. I fell silent, listening to the calls of water fowl and the quiet splashes the Ichthies made whenever they surfaced as they followed beside the raft as playful as they had been. I watched them, a small smile playing on my lips.


	9. The Guardians

"Almost there lass." Badge's voice pulled me out of my own little world which I had slipped into while I stared out at the never-ending expanse of water. I looked up at him and nodded, unable to stop the yawn that forced its way forward. Today had been quite exciting, and I swear I was still feeling the after-effects from the night before. I leaned against Badge's leg and closed my eyes. I heard him chuckle. "There's time for a little catnap if you wish."

I smiled, my eyes still closed.

"Lightweight…" I heard Hart grumble quietly. The wind had carried her voice back to me and I frowned, opening my eyes again. When I looked at her she was still looking around, forever on guard apparently. Trick stayed quiet as he moved to adjust the sail a little. Looking at him made me shiver. My clothes were still wet and the breeze was cooling down minute by minute as the sun lowered towards the horizon. He was still shirtless and I wondered if he was cold too or if I was just being a baby.

I looked up at Badge, "Is there anything I can help with?"

When he looked down at me, his expression softened. "Don't worry about Hart," he said softly. So he had heard her too. "She's rough around the edges, but she's a good person to have by your side in a scrape."

His words did nothing to make me feel more useful, but the fact that he didn't give me a task was answer enough to tell me I wasn't needed. I stayed put, taking comfort from the warmth his leg was providing my side with. I fought to keep my eyes open. The lulling noises from the lapping waves and quieted calls from the birds weren't helpful in that regard. They were soothing and made me want to close my eyes and just rest for a little…

'No!' I shook myself, trying to rid my mind and body of the sleepiness and forced my eyes to look around. The land was a lot closer than it had been last time I looked towards it.

"Heh, determined little shit," Trick's voice made me look up and he was looking out behind us. I followed his gaze and saw the huge gray back of the leedsichthys break the surface then disappear again with a massive 'whoosh' of its tail. "Followed us the whole way," he shook his head when I looked back over at him. His eyes met mine and he winked, "Check it out," he pointed ahead of us.

Tall stone walls loomed up ahead, extending out into the water. We were approaching it quickly and Trick moved to adjust the sail again so that it wouldn't catch quite as much wind. Juraship Park cruised along the wall until larger than life doors came into view. They were open and as we neared it, Badge turned the rudder expertly and guided the raft right through them. As soon as we passed, Trick gestured for Hart to take over and he dove off the raft.

I watched him disappear over the edge then saw him climb up on a ridge that I hadn't noticed extended off the wall at the surface level of the water. He cranked a mechanism and the doors began to close slowly with loud creaking protests as they pushed through the water. I chewed my lower lip, watching them close with a final 'thud' and looked around at the rest of the base.

The wall extended right up a cliff and further beyond past my line of sight. There were stone stairs with flat sections adorned with posts with lighted sconces and various items strewn about on them between each section of stairs. On top of the cliff sat an impressive stone building, complete with windows and balconies even. I smiled, feeling my eyes get misty. No more waking up, jumping at every little sound outside my tiny little thatch hut. Suddenly I couldn't wait to go to sleep.

And there was plenty of room for Killer to strut around too. I hoped briefly that he'd be ok until I could get back to collect him. Badge pulled the raft up to a dock and Hart jumped off, efficiently getting to work tying the raft up.

"Shall we?" Badge held his hand down to me. I took it and allowed him to help pull me up and he held it while I jumped off the raft up onto the deck to steady me. He stepped over the small gap easily with his long stride then with his hand placed gently between my shoulder blades, he guided me up the beach towards the staircase that spiraled up the Cliffside.

"Welcome to our humble abode newbie," Trick said with a smile in his voice as he jogged up behind us. I was relieved to see he had his shirt back on. That was one distraction I didn't need. "Hey Badge?"

Badge looked over his shoulder at the question in Trick's tone. "Hm?"

"Isn't it my turn to hold her?" he wiggled his eyebrows at me and I rolled my eyes again while Badge chuckled.

"Thirsty." Hart's simple word had me giggling.

Trick turned to her, "Not thirsty enough to tap dat ass." he said jokingly at her.

Next thing I knew Trick jumped backwards, putting himself in my path as he grinned wildly back at Hart. He dodged something that I realized surprisingly was a stone and yanked me out of Badge's grasp, using me as a meat shield. My eyes widened as I saw Hart wind up another throw. I ticked my head to the right, hoping she would get my meaning. A wicked grin crossed her features and she nodded.

I began to count down from three on my fingers, keeping my hand low so Trick wouldn't see it. She was throwing as soon as my last finger went down, I clamped my eyes shut tight, hoping I wouldn't get hit in the crossfire as I dodged right. A heavy thud sounded in my left ear, a string of curses and then the hands that had been holding me captive launched me forward and away from him and I stumbled, hitting the ground on my hands and knees. Luckily the sand cushioned my fall so no new injuries occurred. Whew.

Hart was laughing harder than I thought was possible from her and she reached down to help me up. I grinned up at her and she nodded at me. She didn't say anything, but I felt that I had just gained some respect in her eyes. I beamed and we rejoined Badge, leaving Trick staggering slightly behind us, cupping his right temple.

We made it to the base of the stairs quickly, and Trick was still mumbling behind us. I caught a few things he was saying. "Dinosaurs? No problem, throw them at me. But women? By the Ark Gods they are scary creatures." I did my best to hold back my laughter. "At least the lizards just want to eat. Women? Evil. Conniving. Spiteful…" He trailed off as he got closer to us because we slowed down. Hart spun around and jabbed a finger at him.

"Touch my ass, and I'll push you off this time. I swear it." And with that she spun around and began ascending the stairs. I shot Trick an accusatory look and he shrugged at me with an easy smile on his face.

"And I'll help her," I mumbled and followed the other girl. Badge didn't even try to hold back his laughter. It boomed out behind me. I heard his palm hit Trick's back good naturedly before he followed behind me.

We all ascended the stairs in silence, aside from Trick, who was grumbling again, but this time I couldn't hear anything he said. My legs began to feel heavy about three quarters of the way up but I refused to slow down. I tried to take deep, even breaths but despite my attempts, my lungs were working laboriously by the time we reached the top. And here I had been thinking I was fit. Ha! The other three were still breathing completely normal. I hung my head in shame.

Badge ushered me towards a side door, both Hart and Trick headed in their own directions, leaving Badge and I alone. We walked through a finely carved wooden door and I couldn't help but admire the workmanship behind it. It was reinforced with stone borders and had interesting details of raptors carved into it.

"Badge, that you? You guys are back sooner than-" The owner of the new voice stopped in his tracks when he saw me. "Well I'll be... You found one too?" He looked at Badge incredulously. When Badge just shot him a curious look in response, the man made a "come here" gesture to something off to his side. A middle aged man came out from around the corner, his hands fisted at his sides. He smiled at me and I nodded in greeting. "Found him up by the Ob. Said he was rejected by his old tribe. Apparently they stole all of his belongings, then exiled him."

"Why?" Badge directed the question at the older man.

He shrugged and shook his head, "I guess they just wanted my stuff," he said simply, looking completely betrayed.

Badge sighed, "No worries. We'll help you get back what you lost."

I smiled, seeing how Badge was willing to help people in need.

"Or," the other guy jumped in, "We can put both of them to work that way they can just stay here with us. They'd get a safe place to stay, take on some of the responsibilities? Lighten our loads a bit too?" He looked between us two… What was it Trick called me? Oh yea, newbie… newbies and waited for our input.

"I wouldn't mind staying here," I said without hesitation. The man grinned wide and then looked towards the other older man.

He nodded, "Yea, would be nice." he said with a smile of his own.

"Right then! It's settled! Welcome to the tribe Runaway and…" he trailed off, looking at me expectantly.

"She doesn't have a name just yet." Badge jumped in, sparing me from having to explain myself.

"No worries. We'll end up finding a name for her." he grinned.

I didn't like how he was talking about me like I wasn't there. And there was something about his face that put me on edge too. But, if Badge trusted him, then I would too. Just then Badge turned to me and pointed at the other man, "That is Guardian. The founder and leader of our tribe. We call ourselves the Guardians because we rescue people who have no tribes of their own and we watch over and guard other smaller tribes." he explained to me.

I nodded, glad that I had ended up running into such friendly people.

"So, is Trick and Hart putting the metal near the forges?" Guardian asked, completely changing the subject.

"We weren't able to get the metal. We had delays getting out there, and then she stumbled in on us. We figured we'd get her to safety and go back for the metal tomorrow." Badge smiled reassuringly down at me, probably having noticed my frown at realizing I had kept them from their task.

Guardian nodded. "What kind of delays?"

"The Takers kind," Badge's voice sounded weary suddenly.

"Again?" Guardian just looked annoyed.

"They're getting more bold. Attacking in larger numbers too. We're going to have to start carrying more, and better, weapons with us," Badge shook his head. I had already fallen behind in the conversation, lost to the meaning of The Takers.

"That's why we needed that metal," Guardian reiterated on their 'failure' that day. Badge just nodded with a small sigh. "Well, show these two to their quarters. I'll show 'em what they can do 'round the base tomorrow while you guys head out for the metal."

Badge nodded again and gestured for Runaway and I to follow him. We left without another word, going through a door off to the left. The room we entered was large with plenty of windows to let in the dying rays of the sun outside in. It was darker than it normally would be, and I couldn't wait to see it when it was brighter outside. From what I could see there were training dummies and weapon racks. It totally reminded me of a medieval setting.

We didn't walk through the room, instead we took a sharp left as soon as we had entered and up a single flight of spiral stairs. At the top was a long corridor, lined with wooden doors.

"This is The Den. It's where we all sleep and keep our personal belongings." He pointed to the first room, "Mine. Then that one is Hart's and that is Trick's," He gestured to the room beside his and then the one directly across from it. "Runaway, you can have this room," he pointed to the one on the other side of Hart's room. "And you take that one lass," he gestured to the room across from his and beside Trick's. I nodded, glad he put me close to his room. If I needed help, he'd be right across the hall. I took comfort in that.

"I'd offer a tour of the base… but I think Guardian wants to speak to me about… Things." he finished softly.

"Who are The Takers?" I asked quickly.

"They're a tribe that raids others for their resources and hard work so they don't have to do it themselves. Any tribes that don't willingly comply and hand over their "taxes"," he spat the word, "they "enforce" their "laws" by murdering members of the smaller tribes."

I could instantly tell that Badge was angry, not only because of his tone, but the fact that he kept air-quoting and spitting out words like they were venomous. "I wasn't aware there were people like that…" I said quietly, secretly thanking whatever higher power was listening that I hadn't encountered them when I was alone. But honestly, I hadn't known that there were ANY other humans until today.

Badge just nodded, "Don't worry about them. Just try and get settled in for now." He forced a smile.

I smiled back, trying to alleviate some of his stress. "Don't feel bad about the tour thing either. I'm so bushed, I feel like falling asleep right here," I laughed softly.

He chuckled, "Well, don't do that. Your bed will be much more comfortable." And with that he turned around and headed back the way he'd come from.

I awkwardly turned to face Runaway who'd been quiet through our whole exchange. "Hey," I said. With the lack of anything better popping into my head it was all I could muster up.

Thankfully though, the older man gave me a toothy smile and extended his hand, "Nice to meet you."

I took his hand, shaking it lightly. He had brown eyes and his dark brown hair had gray spots in it. The smile he offered me was friendly enough that I immediately decided I liked him. "Same. How long you been here?" I asked.

"Here at this base? Or on the Ark? 'Cause Guardian just found me today. But I've lived on the Ark for… Probably about three months now? I stopped counting after 22 days," he shrugged. There it was again… The Ark?

"What do people mean by The Ark?" I didn't mean to ignore everything else he had said, but I wanted to know so badly.

"You must be new? The Ark is what the land we're in is called. There are ruins from past survivors who pre date us by who knows how long and they've left clues behind about the land and creatures that they were able to learn during their lives. It's all a huge mystery. Some tribes even think it's some kind of conspiracy or religious thing going on. Nut jobs." he shook his head.

"Huh…" I mumbled as I contemplated what he'd said. Trick's idea of aliens popped into my head again and I almost smiled.

"You'll learn in no time. Lucky you found a helpful tribe and not one of those wacko ones out there," he offered me a reassuring smile which had me grinning back. "I've had my fair share of run-ins with the wackos. Not fun," he chuckled. "You look like you're about to fall over where you're standing, love. You should get some rest."

I nodded, finally allowing my exhaustion to register. I stifled a yawn and placed a hand on my door. "Talk to you tomorrow then?"

He nodded and I pushed my door open with a smile on my face. Excitement, relief, apprehension, fear and many other emotions were swirling around in my head as I looked around my new room. Ah! New room! Complete with stone walls, a window and… A door that led out to a balcony! I grinned widely. Not to mention the fact that across the hall was the protective Badge and right beside me was the muscular (and ridiculously hot) Trick.

I plopped down on the bed with a huge sigh. Sleep… Sleep would actually come to me in this place. I could actually rest. I'd never take sleep for granted ever again after the past ten days! I glanced around at the rest of my room, there was a chest with two large storage closets on either side of it and sconces beside both of those. I noticed that there was a pouch full of orange powdery stuff hanging from the sconces. There was a bedside table at the head of my bed and atop it sat a piece of flint and a stone. I picked them up curiously and hit them together, watching the sparks cascade harmlessly to the floor. I grinned and put them back where I found them.

I looked back over at the door that led out to the balcony, deciding that I was definitely going to check that out first thing in the morning. An empty weapon rack sat in the corner and I realized then that I had forgotten my spear back on Juraship Park. I bit my cheek, telling myself to make sure I went and got it tomorrow.

I was just about to undress and free myself from my still slightly damp clothes to lay down, finally done with my examination of my new space when a knock sounded at my door. "You can come in," I called out. Trick walked through the door and I eyed him warily. But his face was completely serious, none of his usual humor glinted in his eyes.

"I brought you some food. Figured you'd like to eat before you sleep. Here," he handed me a wooden tray. "That's longrass and lystro stew."

"Longrass? Lystro?" I asked, eyeing the food hungrily. I picked up the wooden spoon and began eating even before Trick answered.

"Longrass is like corn, only sweeter. And lystro's are a small dinosaur that is pretty abundant and docile. I'll point one out to you next time we're outside the walls." I looked up from my food, baffled by his unusually calm and joke-free behavior. He looked away uncomfortably. "Eat up. If I know Guardian, he's going to put you straight to work in the morning."

"I don't mind," I said between spoonfuls. Trick let out a small chuckle, but it sounded strained. I thought about asking him what was up but then Hart walked in.

"Here," she dropped a pile of clothes on the floor beside my feet. "A ghillie outfit that should fit you. Your fur and your chitin are in the armory which Guardian will probably show you in the morning." she turned and left before I could thank her. I stared down at the clothes at my feet and Trick let out a low whistle.

"Wow. She gave you one of her best sets." He bent down, picking up the shirt piece of the outfit. "Yupp, prime ghillie, double threaded for durability and…" he paused as he shifted through the camouflaged article. "Oh yea, hidden pockets for daggers and see this?" he pushed the fabric in my face. I nodded, looking at the three loops on the shoulder and he turned the shirt and showed me an identical three loops on the opposite side where the shirt would rest against my hips. "To stabilize the quiver so it doesn't flop around for maximum stealth. She spent a lot of time making this shirt for sure. She must like you," he finished.

Suddenly I felt suspicious of what he was saying and I studied his face for any signs of trickery, but all I saw was the same seriousness he'd had since he walked in. Again I felt like asking him if something was wrong, but he sighed, dropped the shirt back on the pile and shot a forced smile my way. "Well, sleep tight. If you need anything, I'm in the room next door. Hart is across from me and…"

"Thanks Trick." I interrupted him. His expression settled into an easy, though still strained, smile and he turned to leave.

"Good night newbie."

"Night," I said. There was a pause before the door latched firmly and then I was alone again. But not truly alone. I smiled at the idea and finished my food quickly. Placing the tray on the table beside my bed, I stood up and discarded my damp, ratty clothes. Then I nestled under the fur blankets, marveling for a moment at their softness. I turned to face the wall so that I wasn't putting pressure on my lightly throbbing shoulder. But despite my discomfort, sleep quickly consumed me.

* * *

Hey everybody! I appreciate the support and am glad you're finding this Ark: Survival Evolved fanfiction interesting! I'd like to hear from you guys! What kind of things do you hope or predict will happen? Do you guys like tragedy? Romance? You guys have any predictions swirling around in your minds? I would love to hear about them! :3

Constructive criticism is ALWAYS welcome too! Think it's boring so far? Think it could use more imagery? Anything that could help me grow s a writer and help you enjoy the story more would be fantastic!


	10. Not All Friendly

I groggily opened my eyes, momentary disorientation had me glancing around to figure out where I was. But it didn't take long for my memory to come crashing back down on me and a tired smile stretched across my face. I briefly wondered what time it was, hoping I hadn't slept late and was giving Guardian the impression that I was a lazy sop.

I stretched, but jerked my arms back down when the motion caused my shoulder to sting. So I just swung my feet off the side of the bed, my bare skin touching the cold stone made me shiver, but I quelled the urge to dive back into the warmth of the fur blankets. I stood up, stretching again, remembering this time to be mindful of my wounds and I noticed that for the first time since waking up in this forsaken land, I felt completely rested.

With a wide grin adorning my face, I approached the pile of clothes and inspected the new ghillie outfit that Hart had given me. I definitely needed to thank her for sure. The clothes fit me perfectly I was surprised to find. It was snug in all the right places, but loose enough that I could bend and move unhindered. If it were possible, my grin would have grown when I saw the boots on the ground. I couldn't believe it. Boots, with real soles on them. No more stepping on sharp rocks, or unpleasant splinters in the bottom of my feet.

The gloves that I found I folded and stuck in one of the hidden pockets, deciding I didn't need them just yet. Though, they looked comfortable and easy to move in too. I didn't think they'd constrict my ability to work with my hands at all. Hart was talented for sure.

Yawning one last time, I strode over to the door that led out to the balcony and pulled it open. I stepped out into the fresh air and inhaled deeply, looking out over the ocean, the sun made the water shimmer. Two large, weird looking pelican type birds floated gently on the breeze, calling to each other calmly. I smiled wide, basking in my new home.

"What!-" someone yelled from behind me, I must have jumped like ten feet in the air. I spun around, clapping my hand to my chest, just over my heart as I tried to soothe its racing. "-Are you so smiley about?" Trick finished, his voice completely normal now that he'd already succeeded in scaring me half to death. I glared at him in his comfy looking little chair that was against the wall between our two doorways.

"How long have you been there?" I snapped at him.

"Since dawn. So, yea, I was watching you," he admitted unabashedly.

"Jerk," I retorted, still trying to calm my speeding heart. "Nice shiner by the way." I smirked, looking at his bruised right eye.

Trick stood up with a grunt and that's when I noticed he was carving something. When he caught my glance he held up a warped piece of wood and a dagger. "It's called whittling."

I looked back up at his face and cocked an eyebrow at him. "So you're the one who carved the wolves into the door?"

He beamed a smile in my direction, "So glad my work is noticed. I told you, I like building," he winked.

"That's not building… That's… That's art." I finally blurted out, actually impressed with his skill.

He tapped the side of his nose and leaned forward slightly, he took on a perfect impersonation of Badge's voice. "Building is an art, lass."

I couldn't stop the giggles that escaped and Trick chuckled along with me.

"Well, the day is new, the work is long and the rewards are little. Are you ready?" he cast his eyes up and down my body and I suddenly felt a little self conscious even though I really had no reason to. I tightened my fist over my heart again. Trick turned away, heading towards his door but he stopped just before he disappeared through it and cast me a meaningful look. "And that pitter-patter in your heart isn't from your fright earlier," he teased me quickly and then he was gone. My hand dropped so fast, you'd think my chest had burned it.

"Jerk," I mumbled again lamely, unable to come up with anything else in response. I sighed and after one last look out over the shimmering water, I left the cool breeze behind as I went back through my room and came out into the corridor that held all the bedrooms. I had half expected to see Trick waiting there to tease me some more, but the hall was empty. I shrugged and headed in the only direction I knew to go.

As soon as I reached the bottom of the stairs I heard grunting mixed with muffled pounding noises. I glanced around and saw Hart practicing hand to hand on a hide sack full of something. She was so deep in concentration though that I didn't want to disturb her even if it was to thank her for the clothes. I chewed my lip for a few moments, admiring Hart's apparent strength and determination. I couldn't help but compare myself to her.

Finally I turned and headed into the main hall where I had met Guardian the night before. Runaway sat there, poring over a bowl of some kind of food. I suddenly remembered the stew last night and my mouth watered. That was when I realized I had forgotten the tray and bowl up in my room. I spun around and headed back up to collect it.

I was just coming back out of my room when Badge exited his room. "Mornin' Lass. Shall I accompany you?" his smile was warm and welcoming.

I nodded, "I'd be grateful for your company," I took his arm as he offered it to me and he took my tray from me. "You have chivalrous manners, like you came straight out of the eighteenth century," I grinned up at him.

He smiled back, "Being a gentleman is a practice easily forgotten by most," he said, shaking his head slowly. I nodded in agreement, thinking about Trick.

We reached the main hall before I could continue the conversation and now Runaway was accompanied by Trick, Guardian and two people I hadn't met yet. "Ah, there she is," Guardian said, cutting off whatever the new girl I hadn't met yet was saying. She looked at me and I almost stumbled to a stop. I could pretty much physically feel her glare. I instantly took a step closer to Badge.

"Ahh, I see Hart set you up with a new wardrobe," Guardian continued.

I nodded at him, avoiding looking at the new girl. "Yea, it's really amazing," I said with a forced grin. I felt uneasy with all the attention being on me. Luckily Trick called attention to himself then and spared me any further on-the-spot questions or comments.

"Of course it is. Hart is a woman. Women sew," he grinned wickedly. The new girl rolled her eyes but she smiled anyways.

"Stereotypical ass. Not all women sew, cook and clean," she lightly punched his arm.

Trick scoffed. "Obviously. You're too lazy to do any cleaning, and Pinnochio… well, I wouldn't trust her food if I was seven days starving!" he smiled mischievously. "I'm just saying they should," he baited her.

She shot him a glare, but I could tell there wasn't a hint of real malice in her gaze. Nor was there a single serious note in Trick's Tone. I didn't realize I had been staring at Trick until he turned to me and raised an eyebrow.

"Here, this is my good side Newbie," he turned his head, I noticed it was the left side he showed me, the side without the scar and bruise. My face heated up instantly and I hid it with sarcasm.

"I was just trying to figure out how so much stupid can fit into one small brain…" I looked away flippantly.

Almost the entire room reacted in amusement to that one and I felt proud of myself.

"Tongue like a whip, this one," Runaway said, grinning widely.

Trick shook his head. "I'll get you back for that one newbie," he promised, his lips curling up all evil-like. I fought the urge to swallow nervously.

"Annnyways…" Guardian folded his arms, getting down to business. "Runaway, you'll go with Tanner and help him check our walls, patching things up and making improvements where they can be made," he waited for Runaway to nod in acceptance. "And… Uhm, you," he gestured towards me, "You'll be working with Venus in the gardens."

I chanced another look at the girl and she was staring off at nothing, looking a little annoyed and well, as much the Goddess as her name suggested. She had flowing blonde hair and blue eyes. Her face was so stern… I would be willing to bet that even the harsh environment we lived in wouldn't dare put a single hair on her head out of place due to the fear of facing her wrath.

I bit my tongue, biting back my pleas to be given a different partner. It was an understatement to say I was intimidated for sure. Instead of begging or running away, (both of which were very appealing) I put on my big girl pants and nodded to Guardian.

"Great! Now that's settled. Badge, you guys better get going. And hopefully no delays today," Guardian put his hands on his hips. That was when I finally spoke up.

"Actually, I was hoping I could go with them today…" It came out meekly and I forced myself to stand taller. The thought of being left here with Venus, knowing Badge, Hart and yes, even Trick, were going to be gone was mortifying. But my main reason was for Killer. I was worried about how he was doing. My memories of the raptors and troodons were still fresh in my mind. Guardian looked at me with a raised eyebrow and I could see an ounce of annoyance in his expression.

"Shouldn't you get familiarized with the base?" he asked simply.

"Yes… But I was hoping I could collect a few things from my hut…" I trailed off.

That got Guardian's attention. "Anything valuable?"

"N-not exactly…"

"She wants to get her pet dodo," Hart interjected, striding into the room.

Venus and Tanner both snickered, but at least Tanner had the decency to at least try and cover his with a cough. Venus just looked on with skepticism and scornful amusement. I avoided glaring at her and offered Hart a thankful smile, hoping she had jumped in to be helpful. She didn't look back at me.

"We'll collect him for ya," Trick's suggestion surprised me and both Guardian and I turned to look at him curiously. He shrugged, "Well, we're gonna be out that way anyhow, so why not?"

Guardian nodded then looked at me, "Does that suit you?"

I gave Trick one more look and he shot a cocky grin at me. My eyes moved to Badge and he nodded encouragingly. I grinned and found myself nodding. "Yea," I said quietly.

"Then that's settled! Venus, Tanner, show your charges the base and then put them to work!" And with that, Guardian turned around and disappeared through a door.

I faced Badge, intent on telling him what killer looked like but Trick gestured to something and when I looked I saw Venus exit through a side door. I frowned and hurried after her, waving to the other five people in the room before I dashed through the slowly closing door. I hadn't gotten to thank Hart OR eat. Today was going to be a challenge.

When I caught up to the other girl, I trailed carefully behind her. She led me to an adjacent building, pointed at it and said, "Forge." Then she just kept walking. The whole "tour" was like that. "Greenhouse… Watchtower A and B… Front Gate… Storage shack… Bunker…"

My shoulders were slumped as I followed her around, wishing I could see more of the base that was my new home. "The field. That's everything." I watched as she turned on the spot while I stood there, staring at the large empty field in front of me. I wondered what they used it for but dutifully I rushed after Venus.

"Hey newbie!" Both Venus and I turned at Trick's voice. He was striding towards us, a grin on his face and my spear in his hand. "Thought you might want this," he held it out to me and I mechanically took it from him. "I'll have to see how you use it. Give you some pointers or something."

Venus made an unattractive noise in the back of her throat and we both looked at her. "She doesn't look like the fighting type."

Trick raised an eyebrow. "I think I'll let her decide that in the end."

Venus looked like she was on the verge of getting angry. "Look at her. She wouldn't last a day."

"Really? Because… I'm pretty sure I've already lasted ten," I shot back defensively.

"Luck," she quipped back, her eyes narrowed.

Before I could retaliate, Trick's voice cut in. "I dunno Venus. When we found her she just looked determined."

"And?" she folded her arms.

"And.. when we found you, you were crying because you had dirt under your fingernails." Trick's voice wasn't sarcastic or accusatory. It was like he was just stating facts.

His remark still infuriated Venus though, but she took it out on me instead. I caught the full brunt of her glare. The force of it almost felt like it would knock me back a few feet. Trick let out a low whistle.

"I hope you're both still alive when we get back. Would be a shame to lose the only pretty faces to look at for miles around," he winked, flashing us a wicked grin.

I narrowed my eyes and folded my arms but Venus… she practically swooned over his remark. Suddenly she didn't seem so scary to me anymore.

"It's gonna be hard admiring anything when I give you a second black eye," I muttered.

Trick chuckled, shaking his head. "Alright, alright," he said, holding up his hands and slowly backing away. He looked at Venus and winked, "I'll bring back some more seeds if I have the time to find any."

He turned to leave and Venus looked at me. I wanted to smack that smug look off her face. Clearly she was pleased that she had gotten the last bits of attention from Trick. Like I cared. I gripped my spear tightly, holding back the urge to poke her with it. At least she wasn't trying to incinerate me with her eyes anymore…

She turned around, overly pleased with herself and twitched away. I shook my head and reluctantly followed. If I tried to sway my hips that much while I walked, I'd probably break something.

I settled on looking up at the sky to avoid the sight of the girl in front of me and noticed surprisingly how much closer to the giant green lighted tower I was now. I wondered what it was for and debated asking Venus but discarded that thought as soon as it had come.

We made it to the greenhouse and I saw pipes with taps attached to the ends of them. I followed the piping with my eyes and noticed that there were large metallic canisters stacked up, all connected to each other. It took me a moment to realize that they were to collect rainwater to water the crops with. I nodded at the impressive display. There were eight reservoirs and a tap set up for every four plots.

There were five floors though all the upper levels weren't as large as the foundation and were set up in a way that still allowed sunlight to reach every plant. The first floor was stone while the others were made of glass and there were no walls or a ceiling. Just beams were holding up the whole structure. I saw panes of framed glass leaning up against a small wooden shed off to the side. I decided the greenhouse was probably still under construction.

Venus reached for a ladder that led up to the next floor, pausing just long enough to shoot me some orders. "Dispose of any weeds. And don't pick the actual plants. They're worth more to us than you are. Baskets are over there. Pick whatever's ripe." Then she was gone, up the ladder and doing her own thing. I sighed.

"How the hell am I supposed to know what's ripe or not?" I asked the dead air, sighing loudly as I headed for a basket. I squared my shoulders, deciding I would just do my best.

Basket in hand, I went to the first plot and examined the contents. The weeds were easy to distinguish so I got busy pulling them out while I studied the fruits. I sighed with relief, the ripe berries on these plants were definitely the yellow ones. They looked plumper and juicier than their smaller sickly green counterparts. So as soon as the weeds were gone, I cleared the plant of all the ripened berries.

Before I knew it, I was halfway done with the bottom floor. I bent down and started to pull the weeds from my next plot when suddenly water came pouring down on me. "Ack!" I jumped up and away from the cold liquid. I glared at the tap when I heard laughter off towards the reservoirs. Venus stood there with her hand on a lever, freeing the water to cascade through the pipework and to the plants. I scowled at her and waited for the water to stop so I could return to my job.

A few more plants later though, I paused and studied the fruits on them. I chewed my lip. Some of the berries were a light purple color while the others were black. They all varied in sizes too. There were some purple ones larger than the black ones, and vice versa. I remembered the black berries I had tried eating and well… didn't fruits and stuff usually get darker the riper they are? So I decided that that's what these probably were. So, I filled up a second basket and finished weeding all the plots. I walked over and placed my second pile of gathered goodies next to the first, feeling proud of myself as I stretched out my aching back.

Venus saw me standing there and pointed to the shed and called out to me, "There's a barrel of fertilizer in there. Sprinkle all the plots with it."

I sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly while I headed over to do as I was told. I opened the door and the smell almost knocked me on my ass. I threw up my hand to cover my nose. Several compost bins were inside, all chock-full of feces and thatch and swarms of flies zoomed around them. I grimaced, grabbed the nearest barrel to me and pulled it out the door, slamming it shut behind me. Only then did I allow myself to breathe again.

Venus had a smirk on her face when I returned and I thought about breaking the glass out from underneath her for a short moment.

"Use that pulley system over there to get the barrel up to the higher levels," she called down to me, not looking away from her work.

I nodded. "What do I use to scoop the fertilizer with?" I asked, casting my eyes around.

"Your hands."

I stared at her for a moment in disbelief. When she just kept working I groaned quietly then got to work. The sun was setting by the time we finished. We had stopped once during midday to eat and then got straight back to work.

Venus handed her baskets down to me, then climbed down the ladder herself. "What are the names of all these?" I asked, gesturing to the baskets in front of me.

She rolled her eyes, acting like I was an extreme burden. "Rockarrots, Savoroot, longrass, tinto berries, azul berries, narco berries, stim berries," she listed off all the plants she had collected from the upper floors. Which in my defense, added up to only a little more than the whole bottom floor put together.

When she got to my baskets though, her look of annoyance turned to anger. She glared at me. "Amar berries, and these were SUPPOSED to be mejo berries. Do I have to hold your fucking hand?" she asked harshly.

"What's going on?" Guardian's voice behind me made me jump and I cast my eyes down, ready to be reprimanded again for my mistake.

"DodoBrain over here just ruined our next mejo berry harvest. That's what." Venus said venomously.

"How'd she do that?"

"She picked the ones that weren't ripe."

"I'm sorry! I didn't know…" I frowned, hoping this wouldn't get me booted from the tribe. Messing up on the first day... Slick move.

"Didn't know how to pick berries?" Venus spat.

"I couldn't tell which ones were the ripe ones." I pleaded with Guardian, knowing I'd get no remorse from Miss Priss.

"You didn't tell her how to distinguish them?" Guardian's voice was serious.

Venus looked taken aback. "Well, I thought- No." she rolled her eyes.

"Then, as a failure to properly teach her, that falls on your shoulders. Now take responsibility and go pick the ripe ones. Hopefully we can make it work with the shortage next harvest." Guardian settled it very diplomatically and I silently sighed with relief. Venus glared daggers at me, but turned away with a wave of her hair and stalked off. Dumping my second basket of useless berries in the barrel of fertilizer on her way past.

Guardian turned to me and offered me a smile, "Alright, help me take these baskets to the storage shack. I'll show you how we make peace with other tribes," he winked at me.

I nodded and immediately began scooping up some of the baskets. As I was bent over, something rubbed against my behind and I almost tumbled forward. I shot up, ready to smack whoever it was but instead I found myself taking a few steps back quickly.

"Don't let her get in the baskets!" Guardian rushed forward, trying to block the large creature. It's elongated nose that reminded me of a very short elephant trunk rested up on top of his shoulder as it tried to push its way past Guardian. I quickly began picking up the baskets again while also trying not to spill any of the contents.

"Toss a handful of the Azuls over here." Guardian grunted and I hesitated for a moment trying to remember which ones were the azul berries, but soon as I remembered, I rushed to do as I was told. The berries plopped to the ground at the creature's feet, rolling away in different directions. The animal quit its advancement in favor of the easier meal and Guardian took his chance. He picked up the remaining baskets and ushered me away with him quickly. I followed closely behind him, casting glances behind us.

"Phiomia. That's what that thing is called. We never chased it off the grounds because they're completely nonaggressive and their droppings are good for fertilizer," He informed me. "And believe me when I say she produces a lot..." he chuckled.

"Huh," I muttered as I followed Guardian through the grounds.

* * *

Sorry my lovelies for the slow upload this time. I found myself at a loss to concentrate because I got really sick for a few days there. Thank you for the feedback from the last chapter. These are about to really pick up! Stay tuned (:


	11. Reunion

Guardian took me to the Storage Shack and held the door open for me. Once we were inside, he put his baskets down and pointed to a chest off to our right. "Rockarrots, Savoroot and longrass go in there. Badge likes them all being together, easily accessible."

"Badge?" I asked, already taking the three specified baskets towards the chest.

"Yea, he's the one who cooks usually. That man can work wonders with food."

"Hmm," I hummed as I emptied out my baskets, remembering the longrass and lystro stew Trick had brought to me last night.

"But this…" Guardian's voice broke through my thoughts. "This is what gives us a hands up in our trading routes. A lot of the other Tribes hold their best stuff for us because of this." He grinned proudly at the twelve fermentation barrels that lined the left wall. I lifted my eyebrow.

"Alcohol?"

"You betcha! There's not much one won't trade for a night of being able to forget the perils of this land," he nodded approvingly.

I didn't think that sounded too safe, getting drunk and dampening your ability to protect yourself, but I could also see the appeal. I realized Guardian was waiting for some kind of response from me so I put on an impressed smile and nodded. "Genius."

He puffed up happily. "I know! And I've figured out the Best mixture of berries to create the ultimate taste!" He excitedly went on and on about his testing and how long it took him to get it just right. "This barrel is still the tester barrel. In case I find something even better. Usually the alcohol from this barrel is for our own personal consumption."

I politely listened to him all while he worked, adding in a certain amount of berries into each barrel. "See these white berries?"

"Stim berries." I muttered and nodded, remembering the name from when Venus had told me.

"Exactly. They make you dehydrate if you eat too many. So adding just a little makes people want to keep drinking the alcohol. Making them consume more and thus, helping us trade more!"

I got the impression that Guardian was a little high on himself, but I stayed attentive, nodding in all the right places, exclaiming how amazing what he was saying was every now and then.

"Now these two barrels, I call these my sleep elixers. Just enough narcos in them to give you a good night's sleep after a pretty pleasant buzz. I keep the prices jacked on these babies. They're in high demand. Trick is making more barrels and collecting more seeds for more plants so we can make more…"

Just as soon as I began wondering if he was ever going to shut up…

"Well! That's that. All I need are the mejos from Venus. You can go get some food. Leftover Stew or you can wait until Badge gets back and have whatever he decides to prepare."

My shoulders slumped a little when I realized the other three weren't back yet. I nodded and left to head toward the main hall. I passed Venus on her way to Guardian and she shot me a glare. I tried to ignore her, unable to think of anything I could say that wouldn't anger her.

"Hey there love." Runaway's voice greeted me as I walked through the carved wooden door.

"Heya," I murmured, casting looks at him and Tanner.

"We didn't get properly introduced this morning," Tanner said with a smile, standing up from the table. He approached me and held out his hand, "I'm Tanner."

I offered him a smile as I took his hand, "No name." I murmured and he chuckled.

"Haven't found anything that suits you yet?"

"Unless DodoBrain, Newbie or Lass counts… Not really." I grimaced.

"Well, none of those are very flattering," he joked. "I'm pretty inventive. I'll just keep throwing different names at you whenever we talk and just shake your head if you despise it." he winked.

I instantly liked his demeanor and found myself smiling easily around him. "Will do," I followed him back to the table.

"We were actually just talking about how we got our names ourselves." He sat opposite me when I sat beside Runaway.

"Oh?" I cast a questioning look at Runaway.

The older man nodded and flashed me a toothy grin. "I'm really good at running away from danger. I'm not a fighter," he took a sip from the cup in front of him.

"That's how you've survived this long huh?" Tanner teased him.

"If it works, it works," he mumbled into his cup.

"What about you?" I turned and asked Tanner.

He gave me a mischievous look as he held up his arm, pointing to his naturally darker skin. "I always tell people they're jealous because I'm tanner than them." he wiggled his eyebrows at me.

I laughed, shaking my head. "That's not tan," Runaway grunted which made both Tanner and I laugh harder.

"Wow. I feel stupid," Runaway's face blanked for a moment. "No one can be Tanner than you… because you ARE Tanner!"

The two of us burst out into hysterics and Tanner reached forward. "I think you've had enough Bud," he pulled the cup away.

"He's drunk!" it dawned on me suddenly and I said it like a statement rather than a question, but they both answered anyways.

"A little," Tanner smirked.

"A lot-tle actually," Runaway nodded, clearly pleased.

"Better get you out of the hall before Guardian comes in," Tanner chuckled and walked around the table, lifting Runaway from his seat and leading him away.

I watched as their forms disappeared, the contrast between the two was pretty hilarious. The older, plumpy and extremely pale Runaway being supported by the young, twig-like, dark Tanner was an interesting sight indeed.

My smile held for a bit after they left but then I started to feel uneasy, sitting here by myself. I was just about to get up when the door opened behind me. I turned and saw Badge and Hart walk in and offered them both a large, welcoming smile. Hart was grinning about something, which in itself was rare.

She walked right up to me and punched me lightly in the arm, "I owe you. I just had the best damn day in a long time," she plopped down beside me while Badge chuckled.

My face was a huge question mark as I peered between the two of them.

"I'll go get the goodies started," Badge said, laughter still tinting his voice.

"Do I wanna know?" I asked Hart, her smile and laughter was contagious and I found myself grinning.

Just then the door flung open again and Trick walked in. Hart burst out laughing again when she saw him.

"You," he said and pointed at me. My eyes widened.

"What happened to you?" I asked, my eyes taking in all of his scratches and scrapes that were still red, swollen and some were even bleeding.

Hart's hysterics made him glare at her before his gaze returned to me. The girl beside me bent forward, gripping her abdomen, laughing and groaning at the same time.

"Your stupid bird. That's what. He's lucky he's not the main course tonight," he growled.

"Killer?! Did that?" I asked incredulously, my eyes casting up and down his body again.

"He refused to leave the hut. And when I picked him up and started carrying him to the raft, he started this-" he gestured at himself.

"And he didn't stop the whole way home!" Hart gasped out. "Trick got his ass handed to him by a dodo!" she banged her fist on the table.

"You're dead, Pinnochio," Trick growled and launched for her. She had just enough time to pull her hands up before he wrestled her off her chair and onto the ground. They grappled good naturedly and I laughed at their playful actions.

Finally, they rolled away from each other, both breathing roughly and Hart snickered again. Trick rolled his eyes, "Bitch." He stood up and dusted himself off. "That dumb bird is on the raft still. Wouldn't surprise me if he jumped in the water to try and swim back," he muttered, heading back out the way they had come in.

I jumped up and walked past Trick towards the door, holding in a snicker at his defeated look. I headed towards the docks and realized he was following me. When I raised an eyebrow inquisitively he shrugged.

"I need to wash off," he admitted grudgingly. I giggled and continued walking ahead of him.

"Killer!" I called as soon as I saw his mint green feathers on the raft. His white head turned in my direction and he peeped. His chest puffed up when he saw Trick behind me and he waddled as fast as his fat little body would let him, putting himself between the two of us. I laughed and bent to pick up the dodo.

"I wouldn't do that if I were-" Trick began but fell silent when Killer just nestled into my arms. "Well, what the hell…" he muttered sourly.

I tickled Killer fondly under his chin, "I told him to stay before I left. You were making him go against my wishes. Good boy Killer," I hugged him a little tighter, careful not to hurt him though. My eyes fell on his scabbed over wound from where the troodon had taken a bite out of him.

"Yea, good friggen boy…" Trick growled, walking away, leaving me laughing behind him. I approached the water, sat Killer down and washed my hands off in the cool liquid, splashing my face just before I stood back up. I headed back up the stairs, Killer following closely behind me, struggling to get his chubby self up the stairs. I took pity on him and carried him to the top of the cliff then sat him back down.

When I walked back into the main hall, everyone else was there except for Runaway and Trick. Also, Badge was still absent too, probably still cooking. Hart laughed again when she saw Killer and Venus chuckled, but her laugh wasn't rich and genuine like Hart's was. Her voice was snarky and sarcastic. I did my best to ignore her.

Note to self: Teach Killer to scratch out her eyes.

I sat back down next to Hart who threw an arm over my shoulder in a friendly gesture. Venus narrowed her eyes. What the hell? Did she have a thing for everyone in this tribe or something? I suppressed the urge to glare at her and just smiled back at Hart who was recounting the story of Killer's ass whooping abilities.

I glanced back at my dodo, perched on the floor right behind my seat. When Trick walked in, both Killer and Venus jumped up. Killer puffed up threateningly and Venus rushed over to him, fawning over every little scratch.

I grinned, realizing Trick looked more annoyed at Venus's overbearing attitude than he did at Killer having bested him. He did his best to free himself of the clingy Venus and sat on the other side of Hart from me. The defeated blonde girl took her seat on the other side of the table, glaring at me whenever she caught me looking at her.

Dinner was pleasant, Tanner had tried out two new nicknames, Giggles and Pinkie. Both of which I shot down immediately. He just grinned knowingly both times. Trick questioned him about it at one point, at which Tanner mentioned that he was using his superior skills to help me out. Venus mumbled something but I didn't hear what she said.

I helped Badge clear out the dishes afterwards and walked with him down to the dock to wash it all. "Badge, how long have you been in Guardian's tribe?"

He paused and looked at me, surprised by my sudden curiosity. "Huh, I've lost count how long it's been lass. Feels like it could have been years since I woke up here. Guardian and I found each other when we were both struggling to survive with nothing but wooden shacks to hide us from the world. We decided to band together, compile our strengths so-to-speak. We found this land, saw the potential and started to build it up," as he spoke his eyes, looked distant. Like he was seeing something far away.

"It wasn't until Trick and Joker stumbled on us that it actually began looking like a base. Those boys… Were- are talented," he seemed to struggle on the word 'are'.

"Joker?" I asked softly.

Badge looked at me. "Trick and Joker used to claim they were brothers. They both woke up and found each other the same day and traveled together since then. They've definitely been part of this land longer than anyone else I've met. They traveled as nomads for a very long time together before they decided to lend us their help. Then they just, never left. A while ago however, Joker and one of our other tribe members was ambushed. They never returned, when Hart and Trick went out looking, they only found their remains," Badge's eyes were sad as he recalled the memory. "Trick lost himself for a while there. He wanted nothing but to seek revenge on whoever it was that had killed his brother. He single handedly wiped out two tribes that were known for raiding other tribes. It's only been recent that he's started returning to his normal self. Though, he's more detached than he used to be. He hides it behind sarcasm and mischief. But I can still see it. I think of Trick like my son. Joker too.

"Hart. Venus, Tanner and a few others who are no longer with us were random rescues or in Hart's case, she stayed in our walls for refuge to recuperate before she was going to head off again. She decided to stay. I took her under my wing too because even though she acts all tough and mighty, she suffers too."

I hadn't realized my hands had stopped working until Badge took the bowl I was holding and finished washing it. I blushed as I apologized. I hadn't expected to learn so much about Trick and Hart. "What about Guardian, Venus, tanner and Runaway?" I left myself out on purpose.

Badge smiled at me. "Guardian doesn't need a father-like figure to lean on. It would just hurt his pride if I even tried. Tanner is a good kid, but he hasn't really sought comfort at all, he doesn't seem easily affected by the tragedies that happen daily in this land.

"Venus… she is a special case. She'll come to me about problems, but they're never anything serious, and usually have to do with Trick since she knows how close he is with me. She lives to serve herself first and foremost. And Runaway, well, I'm pretty sure he's older than I am. Trying to take him under my wing would probably just be offensive to him," he winked at me.

I just nodded, casting my eyes down. He patted me on top of my head, "Basically, they chose me. Not vice versa."

When I looked up at him, he smiled knowingly at me. He held his arm out to me and I smiled back at him as I leaned into his side allowing him to "take me under his wing." Neither of us said anything else on our way back up to the main hall, both of us carrying the dishes. Killer was waiting for us at the top of the stairs and I heard Badge chuckle as the dodo fell into step behind me.

Everyone was still in the main hall when we got there aside from Runaway. "Heya Tootsie!" Tanner called out and I shook my head at him, looking mortified.

He and Trick both laughed. When Tanner shot me a playfully apologetic look and glanced over at Trick. I understood right away that Trick had put him up to that one. I grabbed one of the bowls from my stack and threw it at the back of his head. As soon as the bowl hit him, Killer launched himself forward, going after Trick as well. Hart nearly fell out of her chair when she saw the Dodo jump on his leg. Trick kicked out in surprise at first but then used his foot to ward off the chubby thing while he glared at me, holding the back of his head.

"Killer, stop." I said, giving my order in the flattest voice I could.

Trick shot me a malicious grin and picked the dagger up off the table beside him, cocking his eyebrow at me. My eyes widened.

"Killer, come here." I said with more conviction and the dodo immediately waddled over to me, leaving Trick alone finally. I didn't really believe Trick would stab the dodo, but I didn't want him giving Venus any ideas. She was already glaring at the dodo like it was the worst creature in the world. I glared at her, wishing I could shove these dishes up her-

"Ok, so plans tomorrow." Guardians voice once again broke into my thoughts, pulling me back to reality. He was really good at just inserting himself anywhere. When he felt like he had everyone's attention he continued. Badge gestured at the dishes in our arms and I nodded. I went to grab the bowl that was on the floor behind Trick but he spun around and scooped it up, seeing what I was doing. He handed it to me, but when I went to grab it, he pulled it away again. I sighed and made another snatch for it.

I took a step forward and something pushed my foot back so I couldn't use it to catch the rest of my body's forward momentum. I gasped, bracing myself to whack my head on the table or chair or whatever. But instead all I heard was a huge clattering of wood on the stone flooring as I dropped my load of dishes. Simultaneously, a warm pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around me, keeping me from falling. I opened my eyes to see Trick grinning wickedly at me. "Clumsy," his voice was low and husky.

My face flushed red and I staggered up and out of his arms, embarrassment dripping from every pore. Just then I registered how silent everyone else was and I cast my eyes around. My embarrassment tripled and I glared at Trick who just chuckled. Hart punched his arm and bent to pick up the dishes closest to her. I hurriedly got busy picking up the other pieces and stood up once they were all collected.

Except for the one in Trick's hand. He held it out to me and I gave him a wary look. I reached for it, expecting him to pull it back again, but when my fingers closed over the edge of the bowl, I pulled it away from him without any resistance. Then I rushed from the room, right on Badge's heels.

"Freaking jerk. He really gets his jollies off of making me miserable. I'd like to feed him to a leed-Moby-thingie." I grumbled on and on.

Badge chuckled, "You'll get used to him."

"Doubt it," I groaned but went back to stacking the dishes on the shelf after I dusted them off.

Badge and I walked back into the main hall and just Guardian was still there thankfully. "Ah, Badge. So you're leading the route tomorrow. I figured you could take one of the new members with you to learn the route with you, Trick said he'd stay here to work on the greenhouse some more."

Badge nodded and clapped his hand on my shoulder, "Well, that's an easy decision." I beamed up at his face, hearing the absolution in his tone.

"Very well. You realize you'll be gone for approximately five days or so?" Guardian turned and posed the question to me. My eyes widened for a moment, but then I nodded.

"I can handle it," I set my shoulders in determination.

He nodded. "Alright, then it's settled. Go rest up! We'll get the trade goods loaded at dawn," and with that Guardian turned and left the hall.

I looked at Badge and he grinned, "Don't forget to pack your fur and chitin. Hart gave you a set of those along with the ghillie, right?"

I nodded, "But I don't know where it is… My tour today was kind of… fast," I sighed, remembering my day with Venus.

He nodded, "I'll show you around in the morning then," he promised just as we reached The Den. He opened my door for me, wishing me a good night and I closed the door, slumping in my bed while Killer waddled over to a stack of thatch that was strewn about in the corner of my room.

I lifted my eyebrow. "Who?-" I asked myself as I walked up to it. It definitely hadn't been there this morning. I shook my head, completely clueless. Maybe it was Badge. He was in the storage shack where all that thatch is piled. I crawled into bed, giving up on the mystery, hoping my wired up mind would be able to find sleep.

* * *

Alrighty! Next chapter, they're back outside the walls where anything could happen! What will befall our brave trio?


	12. What's Your Thing?

I sighed loudly, turning for like the millionth time already. I just couldn't fall asleep. My mind was too awake. And my shoulder wasn't making it easy to get comfortable. I groaned in annoyance as I rolled onto my stomach. A few more minutes had me sitting up, glaring at nothing in particular. Just laying here was driving me insane. My eyes fell on my spear and I tilted my head.

"Now that's an idea…" I murmured quietly, standing up and putting my ghillie back on. I grabbed my spear and told the sleepy Killer to stay in the room. I quietly stepped through my door into the hallway and headed down the stairs. I took the torch off the wall and used it to light a few of the wall sconces in the training room before placing it back in its holder.

If I was going to go out beyond the walls, I should know how to better protect myself… I knew one night would leave me far from being an expert, but a little practice definitely wouldn't hurt. I began stabbing and hacking away at the closest dummy, correcting myself whenever I blundered. Which was a lot.

A low whistle came from the side of the room with the stairs and I turned with a frown, hoping I hadn't embarrassed myself too badly. But when I saw that it was Trick standing there I just rolled my eyes. All thoughts of embarrassment disappeared.

"It's a wonder you haven't killed yourself with that thing," he teased.

"Whatever," I muttered.

"No, seriously. You're wielding it the way a two year old holds a spoon."

I glared at him and remembered my lucky throw when I hit the troodon that was attacking Killer. "Oh yea?" I turned and threw the spear in his direction. It wasn't until after I threw it that I realized it could actually kill him. My eyes widened but the spear sunk into the chest of the test dummy he was standing beside.

"Wow. That was good," he said, sounding impressed.

"I was aiming for you," I grumbled and walked over to my spear and pulled it out.

"Oh. Then that was bad," he said with a grin. I couldn't help the small smile that came as I rolled my eyes again at him. "Here," he said as he strode forward. "Stand like this," he demonstrated the pose and I tried to copy it. He reached down to my calf and I stepped away from him, glaring. He held up his hands, "All business. Promise."

I watched him warily as he approached me again and made a gesture about getting back into the stance. I held myself in place as his hand grabbed my calf and pulled it to where he wanted my foot. "If you distribute your weight like this, you can easily dodge in any direction. And hold your arms like this," he manipulated my arms, moving my grips on my spear and adjusting my shoulders.

"See how natural that feels?" he asked me. His seriousness had me a little taken aback, but I forced myself to nod. When Trick acted like this, it was like he was a totally different person. "Ok, now take a jab at the dummy and feel how much more power is behind your attack just from the position itself," he stepped back and gestured towards the dummy.

I clenched my jaw, faced my target and then threw my all into the attack. My spear sunk into the side of the dummy's abdomen, the thatch parting around the tip and swallowing it up. As I pulled it back out, the "wound" I had left disappeared as the thatch settled back into its original position. Trick nodded lightly as he walked forward again.

"Power was decent. We'll have to work on your aim. That will come from you learning your movements. Watch when you hit, if you hit too far right, just correct it in your stance before your next attack," I listened intently as he taught me. I was definitely learning more from his instruction than I ever would have on my own.

He continued to drill me for a long while after that. I caught him yawning and suddenly I felt bad. "Sorry for keeping you awake," I apologized.

"You're not. I'm keeping myself up. You're just giving me a distraction while I do so," he shrugged nonchalantly. I chewed my lower lip. "Why are you awake anyways? Shouldn't you be resting before you head off with Badge and Hart?"

Now it was my turn to shrug. "I couldn't sleep," I sighed.

"Ahh, so that's what all that sighing was about…" he shot me a mischievous look. When I looked at him in surprise, he grinned. "I was outside whittling, and you left your windows open," he shook his head, chuckling.

My face heated up. "You know, the proper thing would have been to make your presence known and tell me that I should close my windows or something," I muttered.

"Why? It wasn't bothering me in the least. Quite the opposite actually," he smirked.

My eyes widened. I guess the normal Trick was back. "Don't be so crass." I sighed in annoyance.

"Whoah, I never insinuated anything. That was all in your head," he folded his arms, looking smug.

"What else could you be meaning? And what am I supposed to assume? You're a shameless flirt and don't deny it," I said accusingly.

"Shameless flirt huh? That I am, I suppose. But your sighs were calming. It reminded me that I wasn't alone while I was sitting in an otherwise lonely silence," his voice took on a serious note and I felt a little abashed for jumping to conclusions. When Trick saw my face he shook his head, "Although… I wouldn't say I'm a shameless flirt now that I think of it. A bold flirt maybe…" he grinned at my incredulous look.

"You flirt with everything that walks on two legs and has a vagina," I rolled my eyes. Trick laughed at my comment and I ignored the heat in my cheeks. I couldn't believe I just said that.

"I do not."

"Do so," I stood my ground.

"I don't flirt with Hart," he argued. He was clearly having fun toying with me.

I shot him a skeptical look. "Just yesterday she warned you against touching her ass!"

"Technically, that was the day before yesterday now," he said obstinately.

"That's besides the point," I grumbled.

"I mess with Hart because she gets angry about it. If I don't get her angry, she sits there, all stale and emotionless most of the time," he said, his voice got quieter the more he spoke. I fell silent for a moment, studying his expression until he seemed to come to and shot me a challenging look. I narrowed my eyes.

"Venus," I said, folding my arms.

"Uhm… No." he said simply.

"I was standing right there when you winked at her, promising to get her more seeds and you were totally laying it on thick." I folded my arms.

Trick rolled his eyes. "Obviously that was for your benefit," he said, the amusement in his eyes was pissing me off.

"MY benefit?"

"Yea, did you notice how her hostility towards you dimmed a little after she thought she won my attentions rather than you?"

I stared at him, utter disbelief on my face. He was so self absorbed!

"Or… could it be that you're jealous that you thought I was actually interested in her?" he stepped closer to me, his smirk growing.

"You are so full of yourself." I exclaimed, stepping away from him.

"Nah, just confident. Now, could you stop being so childish and let's get back to practicing. It might just save your life." I studied his face, any and all traces of his joking demeanor were gone, replaced with complete seriousness. I felt like I was getting whiplash from the sudden mood swings coming from him as I teetered on the spot, debating what I should do before my determination to better protect myself won over.

I sighed, shook my head and muttered quietly about bi-polar flirt machines. The only indication Trick made that he heard me was a twitch in the corner of his lips and then we got back to training.

I woke up to knocking on my door and I sat bolt upright. My muscles ached from my physical exertions all day yesterday and from my late night session with Trick. I rubbed my face, the knock coming again. "Yea?" I called out.

"Better get up if you want time for a proper tour before we leave Lass," Badge's calm voice came from the other side. I fought through a yawn and stretched, nodding even though he couldn't see me.

"Oh-kayy," I slurred sleepily as I swung my feet out of bed. I yawned a total of six times just during the time it took me to change. "Man what I wouldn't do for some coffee," I groaned and headed to the door. I vaguely heard the small tat-tat noises of Killer's feet on the stone floor as he hurried along behind me.

"Whoah, nice bed head Slick," Tanner said as soon as I walked out.

"Huh?" I asked, his words taking longer than normal to sink in. Then my hands shot up to my head in horror. Tanner laughed and walked forward.

"Didn't even spare the mirror a glance this morning, did you?" he shook his head.

"I don't have a mirror…" I muttered as Tanner raked his fingers expertly through my hair. "I'll give you one of mine. Trick made them with leftover glass from the crystal that we ground up," he explained as he worked on my hair.

Trick came out of his room then, not looking at all like the late night session had affected him. I looked at him enviously. He stopped and studied us and I became acutely aware of Tanner's fingers sliding through my hair. A look that I didn't recognize flashed across Trick's face but it was gone so fast that I wondered if I had imagined it.

I braced for his teases that were surely coming, but he just turned and walked away after he beamed a smile at us, wishing us a good morning.

"That was weird," Tanner murmured.

"Indeed…" I quietly agreed. Once Tanner was done playing with my hair, he grinned proudly.

"Ta-da, I'm a miracle worker, Slick." he tested the name again since my sleepy brain hadn't caught it the first time. I curled my nose at him and he laughed. "Understood cutie, now let's go. Badge is waiting for us," we walked to the main hall together.

This time around, the tour was much more enjoyable. Badge was patient with me as I asked endless questions. He explained everything he could think of to say, even going so far as sharing old memories with me that corresponded with certain areas. I was smiling the whole time and found myself truly relaxing as I listened to his gruff but calming voice.

The end of the tour came when we made it down to the docks and my eyes fell on Juraship Park and the huge load she was carrying now. There were probably about thirty barrels tied down on one side, and then all types of miscellaneous items on the other side as a counterweight. There looked to be more outfits, various tools and weapons, a couple barrels full of that orange powder which Trick had mentioned was called sparkpowder, and more. My first thought was how tragic it was going to be when we lost all of this stuff to a leed-moby-thingie taking our raft down.

I quelled that thought immediately. I walked over to the chest that Badge pointed me to and discarded my chitin armor and fur outfit safely inside of it. Everyone was there to see the three of us off, except for Venus and Runaway.

And Trick. I noticed. Something about that bothered me, but I shrugged it off. Badge was talking to Guardian about something so I used the opportunity to instruct killer to stay at the base. There was no need to take him away from the safety of these walls.

"That dodo really baffles me," Hart came up behind me. She was looking at Killer curiously and I smiled fondly at the fat, green bird. "But I like him. Especially after what he did to Trick," she smiled as she turned away and began prepping the sails.

"Where is he?" I couldn't help but ask.

But my question was answered as Trick's head popped out of the water, followed by his shoulders. He wiped the water from his face as he addressed Badge whom I'd failed to notice had come up beside me. "All fixed and ready for a voyage."

"Very good job, Trick," Guardian cut in.

Badge placed his hand on my shoulder and he nodded appreciatively at the younger man in front of us. "I'll return her as good as new," he grinned.

"I wouldn't expect any less from you, ol' man. You know what I say," he cast his eyes towards me, mischief dancing within them. "Treat your gals nice and they'll be nice in return."

Hart mumbled something and I just shook my head as I stepped back on board. I cast a nervous glance back at my dodo.

"No worries Sugar. I'll take care of him while you're gone," Tanner piped up. I smiled at him.

"Thank you," I said softly then I shook my head at his inquisitive look. "No Sugar," I said plainly.

"Yea, she's not really that sweet," Trick grinned as he walked right up to me. My eyes travelled up to meet his, lingering just a moment too long on his bare chest. When I finally looked him in the face, he was wearing a cocky grin. "Here," he handed me a spear that looked way more professionally made than my own. "It's a pike. Stronger and sturdier than that thing," he pointed at my spear with his chin. As I took the pike from him, he reached out and plucked my old spear away from me.

"Thanks," I said, my voice a little strained as I watched my spear fall to the ground on the beach a couple feet behind Trick. Suddenly this was all sinking in. I'd wanted nothing more than to be somewhere safe, and now I was willingly stepping outside of the walls again? I was crazy! Bat-shit crazy even! I turned away from Trick to hide my face and the emotions that were probably playing out on it like a movie on the silver screen. I took a deep breath, convincing myself it would be fine. I would be fine. Badge would be there. And Hart. Being alone was no longer an issue.

"Hey," I jumped slightly at the sound of Trick's voice right behind me. I didn't turn to face him, I just stared through the open doors that led out to the ocean. It was still early enough that there was still a slight orange hue to the sky and where it kissed the ocean was absolutely breathtaking.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Trick's voice was soft. I just nodded, trying with all my might just to focus on the sight in front of me rather than what the next few days were going to have in store for me. "Hey," he said again as he nudged me softly in my arm and I forced myself to meet his gaze.

His hands covered mine on the pike and I felt him softly begin to pry my fingers from the death grip they held on the poor weapon. "Relax. You're going to be with Badge and Hart. They wouldn't let anything happen to you. Stick with them and you'll be safe."

He was doing that serious thing again, where he didn't show any of his usual annoying self. So I didn't really know how to respond or act. What I did know, was that a part of me really wished Trick was going to be coming with us too. His laid back and calm demeanor did wonders for distracting my usually overactive imagination.

"You know," his gaze left mine and looked back out towards the water. "Helping you train last night made me realize that you remind me of the horizon."

I furrowed my brows and followed his gaze out to where the calm water's surface met the never ending expanse of sky. "Always out of reach?" I whispered quietly to myself, thinking of the courage I was trying desperately to learn how to hold onto.

Trick chuckled softly. "No. It's mysterious. The adventures it could hold in store for people are endless. The chances of something better waiting out there for us. If we decide not to fear reaching for it," I felt him turn to look at me then."If we just give it a chance."

I slowly turned my face back towards him. Something in his gaze made me question if he was still talking about the horizon or something else. My throat felt dry and it became hard to swallow. Thankfully our small, painfully awkward moment was interrupted as Guardian called out to him. His face returned back to its usual, carefree look so fast I wondered if everything that had just happened was all in my head.

"You'll be ok newbie," he grinned at me, patted my shoulder then strode away. I looked after his retreating back in confusion. Hart jumped back onto the raft and my eyes jumped to her. I hadn't even realized that she'd gone anywhere. I shook my head and tightened my grip on the pike. Trick was right. I was going to be fine. I set my shoulders, took one more fleeting glance at the horizon, then marched up to Badge with a purpose in my step.

"Are you ready to leave there, Lass?" he smiled down at me. I nodded roughly.

"Is there anything I can help with?" I set my pike down on the floor of the raft, next to the chest with our clothing in it.

"You could go see if Hart has anything she wants to teach you about working the sails and ropes up front if you'd like," Badge's smile was genuine and it set me more at ease. I nodded, determination pushing me forward as I approached Hart. As it turned out, she was more than willing to explain to me what she was doing, why she was doing it and even gave me tasks to help with. Giving me clear, crisp instructions that I had no trouble following.

When we had left the docks was the busiest. Hart was running around constantly untying and rearranging ropes as she adjusted the sails to catch the right amount of wind that was needed.

I had looked behind us and waved goodbye to Tanner who was crouching in the sand, making friends with my insane little dodo. Trick had still been there and he shot me a reassuring smile, and for some reason that smile was staying etched into my vision no matter how much further we got from the base.

I sighed, shaking my head to dispel the thoughts that were there. They were just serving to distract and confuse me. I put my all into helping Hart with whatever I could and before long, the base was too far behind us to see anymore. When we hit a lull, and there was quite literally nothing to do, I began to start asking questions.

"So, where exactly are we going?" I turned to Badge as I posed the question.

"We trade with all of the coastal tribes on the island," he said with a soft smile.

"The island?"

"That's what we call the Ark. Because it's just a huge island. Arguably, it could be considered a continent with how large it is… but because it is completely surrounded by a vast amount of water, it has earned the title of island," he shrugged. There was something comforting about his voice when he went into what I was beginning to think of as his, "professor mode."

"So… We're going to go around the whole island?" I posed my guess and my eyes widened at the idea.

"Exactly that. Up north it gets exceptionally cold. Hence why we need the fur and all the blankets at the bottom of the chest." I took a quick look at the chest, almost like I was double checking to make sure it was still there. After a few moments passed and it didn't seem like Badge was going to continue to say anything more, I frowned. Keeping my mind busy with the sails earlier had kept my mind from wandering to thoughts of what was lurking beneath us. And as those thoughts began to creep back into my mind, I pushed them back as far as I could, scrabbling for something else to talk about.

"So-"

"No way…" Hart's voice cut me off and Badge and I both turned to her questioningly. She pointed, "I think those are the same four Ichthies from the day we brought you home," she mumbled, casting a quick look in my direction. I followed her gaze and sure enough, two green ichthies, one darker than the other, a salmon colored one and a small gray one were speeding up to the raft.

"Well I'll be…" Badge murmured softly, the corners of his eyes crinkled up as he smiled. The memory of Trick pulling me into the water that day resurfaced, followed closely by how he and I had played with the four water creatures. I smiled affectionately and walked over to the edge of the raft, kneeled down and splashed my hand on the surface. The smallest of the four shot out of the pod and made a bee-line for my hand. I giggled as it bumped against my palm on its way past. Even though it was smaller than the other three, it was still about four or five feet long.

"I'm not coming in to swim with you guys today," I grumbled affectionately to them, petting them each time they got close enough. Hart crouched down beside me and also reached out, rubbing the ichthies' backs and fins whenever they came in reach. We smiled at each other while Badge watched over us as he continued to steer the raft.

"You know, I'm beginning to think animals are your thing," Hart said softly, not looking at me as her hand ran down the back of the light green ichthy. I thought that the color of her eyes matched the green ichthy pretty fantastically and was imagining how perfect it would be if they could be friends like Killer and I were when her words finally sank in. I pulled my hand from the water and shot her a questioning look.

"My thing?"

She nodded. "Yea. Everyone is good at something. Stealth, hunting with arrows and things like spying and shit: that's my thing. Tanner, well he is unmatched at tracking. He can tell what left the print, what direction the creature was heading, how long ago it had passed by down to the hour. Even the speed it was going." She paused for a moment and looked over our shoulders back towards Badge who was smiling mischievously.

"My "thing" is knowledge about the creatures in the land," he chuckled when Hart scoffed.

"Also cooking. AND understanding and knowing how to deal with people." Hart interjected with a raised eyebrow. She was giving Badge an affectionate grin which softened her face so much I could barely recognize her. But the feelings behind her look were familiar to me and I mirrored her smile as I watched Badge's face.

"I agree. You make people feel welcome and safe," I added.

"Get your butts back to work," he mumbled as he shook his head, sounding indifferent, but the fond smile on his face and the way he averted his eyes from us told us he'd appreciated the kind words. Hart snickered and I giggled as we waved at the ichthies before heading back up to the front of the raft.

"Runaway is good at running from things, or so he told me. And Trick's thing is building?" I kept the conversation going as I checked ropes. Keeping up the same pace and direction… There wasn't really much we needed to do.

Hart looked away, her smile suddenly gone and her eyes distant.

"Trick's more of a fighter. He builds, yes… but building was more Joker's thing. Trick just likes to "make things pretty," as Joker would put it," Badge spoke up again. I shot Hart a questioning look, but she was quiet and avoided looking at either of us. Badge just shook his head softly with a kind look when I moved my eyes to him. I decided Hart's sudden mood must have something to do with Trick or Joker, so I decided to push on quickly.

"And Guardian and Venus?"

Badge sighed softly, like he was trying to think how best to answer that. "Guardian is…" he trailed off, looking thoughtful. Then Hart spoke up again, but her voice was strained.

"Guardian's really good at giving orders. Whether they're smart or not," there was an edge of bitterness in her tone and I wondered if I'd made the wrong choice by moving forward with the conversation. I chewed my lower lip as I fell silent.

"Venus likes fashion," Badge concluded. I answered his reassuring look with a thankful one of my own and he continued. "She's really good at making clothes. She made the clothes you're wearing right now," he nodded approvingly.

"But I thought Hart…" I trailed off, looking between the two of them.

"I add on useful things, like the hidden pockets and securing straps for weapons and such. I've made a few outfits, but I let Venus handle them for the most part since she actually enjoys it and I have other things I could be doing with my time," Hart informed me flatly.

"But there's more to her than that. That girl has a green thumb, let me tell you. Never would have guessed that she enjoyed gardening after the first night we found her and all she could do was complain about how dirty she was…" Badge murmured, a pained expression on his face at the memory.

"Huh," I muttered simply.

"Hey, you," Hart said suddenly to get my attention. Her face scrunched up and she murmured, "You should really pick a name…" and then she shook her head and continued with her original thought. "Get ready to untie the third and fourth knots. We're going to be banking right soon."

I nodded, frowning slightly at what she had said. "Is a name really that important?" I muttered.

"It sure makes it easier for all of us around you to actually have something to call you," Hart grunted.

"I heard Tanner was trying to help you out?" Badge grinned at me which made me feel less defensive.

I nodded, "But nothing he came up with really stuck out to me…" I murmured quietly as I looked out to the never ending ocean beside us and where the sky met it. "However…" I whispered thoughtfully.

"You've thought of something?" Badge pressed me.

I grinned at him, "Something like that." I felt my cheeks get a little warm but tried to ignore it. "What about Horizon?" I asked, holding my breath.

Badge looked pensive for a moment, then, "I like it!" He exclaimed with an approving nod.

"It's better than Venus," Hart mumbled which, coming from Hart was as good as getting a full on approval in my book. I beamed a smile at them both.

"Then it's settled!" I grinned, a small weight felt like it was lifted off my chest.

"Good, now untie the ropes, Horizon," Hart grumbled, but I saw amusement in her eyes as I smiled at her and rushed to do as I was told.

* * *

Finally a name for our heroine (: Took long enough!


	13. Two Different Kinds of Thieves

"Howdy!" A tall man, mid-thirties, physically fit with a buzz cut and brown, bushman eyebrows came jogging out to greet us as soon as we docked at a pier that reached out a ways into the ocean. He bowed his head politely, putting his hat over his heart as he did so. Badge waved merrily at the man and Hart inclined her head in a curt greeting. I just stood there, still dumbfounded by the knowledge I had just learned. The man returned his hat to his head and he and Badge shook hands and began chatting away aimlessly.

"I can't believe it…" I groaned. "The whole time?" I shot Hart a disbelieving look.

She shrugged. "They've definitely been here longer than twelve days," she whispered conspiratorially and I narrowed my eyes at her. Seemed she was taking up Trick's role in teasing me right now. I followed her off the raft and up the dock as she walked behind Badge and the new guy. I looked off to our right and sure enough, far off in the distance, I could just barely make out the huge stone pillar that my tiny encampment was built beside at this very minute.

I shook my head, I had been this close to people the whole time… How was it possible that I DIDN'T know? If I had just ventured a little ways further from my base…

"So! Where's Trick? Who's the new girl?" The new guy asked with a cheery smile, turning to include all three of us in his gaze.

"Trick is finishing up the greenhouse. This here is one of our new tribe members, Horizon." Badge grinned as he looked at me. "Horizon, this is Annihilator. We all call him Anni."

I nodded at Anni, "Nice to meet you," I said softly.

"I seen you around before. Holed up on that little islet over beside rock isle?" He lifted an eyebrow at me and my mouth dropped open. He had known I was there and didn't do anything to help me? "We passed by your place a few days ago. There was a medical emergency though, so we weren't really able to stop and make conversation or such. When we went back the next day, you were gone," he shrugged. "Suppose these guys snatched ya up just before we could." He gave a hearty laugh and I just smiled awkwardly.

"Yea, you were working on that little thatch hut you got there. Pretty caught up in your work. Didn't even look up as we went by," he continued. His story was starting to depress me. I wondered faintly how many other's I had "just missed" throughout all the time I'd been there alone.

Badge chuckled softly and pulled on my shoulder, pressing me into his side reassuringly. I sighed and forced myself to let it go. I smiled up at him apologetically. Just then two more guys came out from the stone building we were standing beside and I felt Badge's side rumble as he hummed quietly to himself.

"Hmm… So, the medical emergency. Towman, Shenny or Jason?" he asked Anni who sighed in response.

"Jason. That kid just never learns. Figured he could sneak past a theri to get to a wounded parasaur. I don't know what his fascination with those things is all about… but he's determined to tame one."

Hart let out a low whistle. "He's lucky to be alive," she mumbled bluntly.

"That kid's got guts. That's for sure," said one of the new guys. I looked him up and down. He was tall and skinny with medium length brown hair that was wavy with a red sheen in it.

"And no brains," said the guy next to him. He was skinny, but not in the same way as the first guy. His thinness was accented by a toned musculature. He had thick, black hair that swept down over his forehead just above his eyes. And his eyes… I bit my lip nervously… weren't very friendly looking.

"Ahhh, Badge, Hart, you both know Kraw," Anni pointed to the friendlier one. "This other miserable piece of shit is Demonic." I raised an eyebrow. Fitting name for sure. "Demonic usually isn't ever at base, he prefers a more adventurous life, so I think this is the first time y'all have met?"

Badge nodded. "Pleasure to meet you. I'm Badge, this here is Horizon and that's Hart. We're from The Guardians." I forced myself not to shrink from Demonic's intimidating look as he sized me up before moving on to Hart. Kraw was much nicer about the exchange and offered us a smile, stepping forward and shaking my hand.

"New and friendly faces always welcome 'round here," he said cheerfully and I found myself smiling.

"Well, I know ya's are busy, shall we get down to the nitty gritty?" Anni asked, rubbing his hands together and Badge nodded, walking forward and pulling me along with him. We walked into the stone building where Badge and Annihilator immediately began talking business. Wares for wares. Hart, Kraw and I watched the exchange like it was a game of pingpong, our eyes darting between the two men. Demonic was the only one who seemed uninterested. He leaned against the wall, a blank look on his face as he stared at the door.

"Shenny!" Anni suddenly yelled out and a shorter, somewhat muscular guy with a slight gut came bursting in through the door on the other side of the room. He had short, orange hair and a tattoo on his upper right arm.

"Wha's up man?" he jogged up to our group.

"You need any beer, or your stock still good for now?"

"Nah, I'm good. Got some o' that sleep elixer stuff the last time. I fall asleep before I can drink so much now," he chuckled. "But next time, definitely!" He laughed loudly then until he saw me. "Well, who's the new girl?"

"Horizon," I said, offering my hand.

His eyes sparkled with interest as he gripped my hand happily, shaking it softly.

"Lil' Shenny, but everyone calls me Shenny for short," he winked. I hid the evil smile that wanted to break across my face and bit my tongue to keep from commenting on the "Lil" part in his name. Instead I just pulled my hand away and focused back in on Anni and Badge's conversation.

"Alright," Badge murmured, turning to Hart and I. "Hart, weapons are more your area of expertise. You come with me to check out what they have, Horizon, go get a few pairs of chitin sets and flak pieces from our stash and bring them here," Badge smiled at me and I nodded, glad I could be useful. I turned to leave immediately and headed back to the raft. I lifted a few chitin chest pieces up and stacked the matching bottoms on top and headed back. No one was in the room when I got there, so I dropped my load and headed back out for another one.

My third load from the raft, I paused when I heard a weird noise to my right, but as I looked, some weird creature with bristled fur, a weird fleshy beak-like mouth and thick tail jumped at me, flying right into my face. I felt a small sting on my cheek as I tumbled backwards. I flung my arms out behind me to try and catch myself, dropping my load of flak boots, gloves and a helmet. My rear hit the sand roughly and my right hand shot up to my cheek. As I pulled it away, I saw smeared blood on my palm and I frowned, casting my eyes around for my attacker.

I found him, fleeing the scene, casting wary looks behind him as he ran. I scowled at the overgrown rodent and leaned over to lift myself up off the ground when I noticed that the little bastard was running off with none other than the flak helmet I had been carrying. I scrambled to my feet and took off after the creature.

"Get back here, you little shit!" I called after him, frowning angrily as I struggled through the sand that shifted unsteadily under my feet. As I closed the distance between myself and the thief, he began to make more hissing noises, probably trying to scare me away. But there was no way I was going to let the thieving little git make me fail a task as simple as retrieving armor from the raft.

As soon as I was close enough, I reached down, grabbed the only part of the helmet I could reach from beside the creature's body and pulled, digging my feet into the ground to empower my forceful yank against the thief's momentum. A small 'twang' noise and the helmet came free from its grasp and the now empty-handed animal tumbled sideways. I whooped out in victory until I saw the determined little shit coming back for round two. But at least this time I was ready for it. I dodged left when the creature launched itself at me again, groping for the helmet.

I righted myself and turned to face my attacker just in time to get a good look at it's sandy colored body fly past me, whipping the helmet back out of my grip. I groaned angrily, flailing my hands wildly through the air after the helmet again, missing my target by just a few inches. And so, the chase was on again.

A huge string of curse words shot out of my mouth as if I was trying to use them as fire power and shoot the thing dead with my voice. I bent down just as I closed in behind the creature and grabbed the helmet with a death grip while simultaneously pushing the furry little bastard as hard as I could with my other hand. With the helmet back in my possession again, I lowered myself into the stance Trick had taught me and readied myself for the thief to come at me again. Its beady little eyes found me and just as I had predicted, it came running at me just like the last few times. I drew back my arm and at just the right moment, I swung.

Hard.

The helmet collided with the thief's head, sending it off its course and its body collided with a large boulder off to my left with a small thud. It slid down to the ground and lay there, knocked out cold. I breathed in a sigh of relief and wiped the back of my hand across my forehead.

I looked up and my eyebrows shot up. I had chased the little shit all the way down the beach! I spun around to look behind me, back towards where I knew Badge and Hart still were. I went to take a step that way but stopped, looking over the small expanse of water that was all that separated me from my little island. A ghost of a smile touched my lips as I saw Trois's slate colored body lumbering around the base of the rock pillar. I chewed my bottom lip, suddenly full of nostalgia. I walked to the edge of the water, judging the distance between where I was and the land on the other side. If I crossed here, I would probably be fine, but it would only get me to the land up beside my island. I wasn't worried though, I knew there was another shallow section I could cross just a short distance up.

I peered up and down the coast into the clear water, checking for piranhas, and when I decided I was safe, I walked briskly into the cool water, and swam the short distance needed to reach the other side, using the helmet as a way to propel me forward faster. As I reached the bank on the other side, I silently cursed the fact that I didn't have my pike with me. A vision of Trick's face as he gave me the pike popped into my mind and I sighed softly then shook my head as I prepared, once again, to cross the water. My ghillie was soaked, but I knew it would dry quickly with me sitting out in the sun all day on the raft.

I took a deep breath and crossed the small river, shaking my arms violently to expel as much of the water as possible from them. I walked up the small incline until my tiny little hut was visible. My eyes widened, and I frowned at the sight that greeted me. Everything was in shambles. My hut was completely torn down, all the wood I had collected was gone. The entire place was looted and destroyed. A tight ache developed in my chest as I slowly walked up to the wreckage.

I spent a good amount of time digging through my old belongings, of which nothing was salvageable. I sighed and watched Trois walk around, completely unfazed by my presence. Just then a small, dark form moved in my peripheral. My eyes jumped to it and widened in shock.

There, laying in the grass, was the one troodon that had survived from my last night on my island. It looked like it had regained some use in its legs, but was too weak to really try. I noticed with a slight sadness that one of its legs was bent awkwardly.

It was slowly pushing itself forward, towards a little brown dodo. But no matter how hard the troodon tried to catch up, the chubby little bird effortlessly stayed clear of the weakened predator. I bit down on my lower lip and took a deep breath, deciding what I was going to do. I didn't want to just leave the thing to its fate, it deserved a fighting chance for holding on this long. I sighed sadly and walked forward. The troodon eyed me warily as I got close to it, but aside from a quick glance, I mostly ignored the creature. I approached the dodo who looked up at me curiously for a moment before its attention was snagged away by a piece of grass fluttering in the breeze.

"Forgive me…" I groaned softly, bending down to grab the dodo by its neck. The bird squawked and fluttered its useless wings and feet as I carried its hefty body over towards the troodon, its eyes watching the dodo hungrily. I bent over stiffly and dropped the squabbling bird right in front of the injured troodon. The fat little dodo succeeded in taking one step away from me before the predator snapped forward awkwardly and bit into the bird's hide.

I scrunched up my face, feeling slightly queasy at what I'd just done and turned away from the gory scene and decided then that I should probably get back to Badge and Hart. I glanced one last time at the troodon, its eyes were watching me as it ate its fresh meal. Not knowing what else to do, I put my hand up in front of me awkwardly, waving farewell to it and I murmured a quick, "Good luck," before hurrying off towards Anni's place.

I made it halfway down the beach before I ran into the search party which consisted of Badge, Hart, Anni, Shenny and Demonic. All carrying weapons and looking fierce and ready to kill whatever had kidnapped me.

I gave them all a sheepish look and held up the helmet. "Some little bastard thing kept running off with the helmet… I had to chase it down," I mumbled. Gods I sounded so lame.

Hart shook her head in exasperation, Anni and Shenny both chuckled while Badge nodded as if he understood and Demonic just stared at me.

"Pegomastax. Thieving little buggers," Badge sighed as he held his arm out for me. The invitation was like a magnetic force. Without hesitation, I stepped forward into his hold and plastered myself to his side. We all turned as a group and headed back towards Anni's base. I couldn't help the smile that came to my face as I thought about how fierce Badge and Hart had looked. It made me feel good to know that they had my back like that.

The scene from my little camp floated back into my mind again and I frowned up at Badge. "Everything was destroyed," I said sadly.

"What was, Lass?" Badge asked, looking at me worriedly.

"My hut, everything I had collected and such," I chewed on my lower lip.

"Doesn't surprise me," Demonic grumbled and I shot a surprised look at him. I was caught off guard that he'd even chosen to insert himself in the conversation.

"Sounds to me like yeh were hit by the Takers," Anni said, his expression darkening. "They been hangin' 'round these parts pretty often of late."

Badge looked at the man, his gaze stern. "Have they been giving you guys any trouble?"

Anni shook his head, "Nah. Not yet at least. They're at war with a tribe that's stationed up the river. Been too busy to look our way," he nodded as he spoke.

"Sure could use Trick down this way, just in case," Demonic mumbled thoughtfully.

"Trick? Why?" the words came out before I'd even realized I had spoken.

Demonic raised an eyebrow at me. "You ever seen that guy fight before?"

I shook my head in answer. I heard Hart mumble quietly beside me, "His thing." Now I was truly curious. But that was when everyone decided to go quiet. I looked between them all, wondering why they'd all gone silent. Anni looked thoughtful, Demonic… I couldn't read his expression at all. Badge looked like he was remembering something painful and Hart's face was turned away from me.

It was Shenny who broke the silence. "Man, we need the angry Trick back. He got shit done."

"Shenny, shut up, you idiot." Demonic's voice was ice cold. Shenny actually shrank back a little. I chewed on my lower lip thinking that Shenny was probably talking about the time when Trick was dead set on avenging Joker's death. I frowned and looked up at Badge. He didn't seem very happy about the other man's comment either. Silence fell over our little group again.

Until I broke it this time.

"Holy shit! Is that a shark?!" I pointed frantically in the water. It made no sense for it to be here. We were in a small bay area, the ocean was behind us. But sure enough, a huge, orange and white striped shark was swimming slowly in the water, following along beside us.

Anni chuckled, "Sure is! That big boy is Nemo. We trapped him in the gulf here to try and tame him up!"

"So far all it has done is made taking baths an adventure," Shenny wriggled his eyebrows at me.

Anni chuckled at my dumbfounded expression. "We used a dead carcass strung under our raft as bait. He followed us right up the river, no problems."

"Aside from him constantly trying to eat us…" Shenny murmured sarcastically as we walked up onto the dock that had two rafts tied to it.

"At least he takes care of those pesky sarcos that keep finding their way over here," Demonic inserted. I glanced back in the water, the dock was deep enough that the huge shark could swim right up beside us. His dorsal fin came up higher than the planks we were walking on.

"I knew he'd grow on y'all," Anni beamed proudly.

I leaned towards the water to get a better view of the giant, man-eating fish. Stepping away from Badge but making sure to stay safely away from the edge and any chance of slipping off the side.

"It's called a megalodon," Badge said. I could tell he was about to slip into professor mode but just then I felt a hard shove right between my shoulder blades. A startled noise escaped my lips as my feet caught on themselves and the water rushed up at me. My arms flailed wildly as I fell.

Suddenly someone was gripping my arm and the momentum of my body made me swing to the side as they pulled back on me. I grasped with my other hand for the force that had hold of me to steady myself, the helmet dropping with a clatter on the dock as it rolled. My panicked brain finally registered that Shenny was the one who saved me and with both his hands gripping me now, he pulled me to him. He was laughing hysterically.

I was too choked up to say or think just then. I forced myself to breathe normally, trying to swallow the lump in my throat which I was sure was my heart from its attempted escape from my chest.

"What the hell were you thinking Shenny?!" Demonic's angry voice made my heart speed up even more.

"I didn't think she'd actually trip," Shenny defended himself, still chuckling in spite of Demonic's glare. I was vaguely aware of a dim pain in my shoulder from the force of my arm being pulled on.

When I looked up I met Demonic's eyes. That was when I realized I was still encircled by Shenny's arms, pressed against his chest. And it clicked that he had been the one to push me. My face blanched again and I stumbled backwards away from him. Not realizing how close to the edge we still were. On my second step backwards, I found no ground for my foot to rest on and down I went again.

I saw Demonic and Hart both launching forward just before I lost sight of them over the bottom of the dock. The water swallowed me up and suddenly everything was dark and quiet aside from the bubbles that rushed up my body and over my ears. Quickly I forced my eyes open, blinking furiously to clear my vision in the cold water. I immediately started to kick my feet and stroke with my arms through the clear liquid towards the surface.

But the splash and my frantic movements in the water had attracted the attention of my not-so-friendly aquatic company. The large orange shark caught my attention as it finished its wide turn and started heading right back for me. I screamed.

Which did absolutely nothing useful. All it did was blur my vision with a stream of air bubbles that cascaded to the surface and waste precious air. As soon as my vision cleared again, the sight of Killer-Nemo filled my vision again, this time closer. I kicked frantically, doubling my efforts to escape any fate that resulted in being eaten by this orange monstrosity.

He was too close though, I knew reaching the surface and climbing out before he reached me was out of my abilities. Instead I reached out towards the nearest post that held up the dock, planning to use It as a shield. It took me a couple kicks, but as soon as my hand touched it, I gripped it and yanked myself towards it. Nemo reached me right as I started to pull myself in. I felt the water current sway and ripple around me from the force of the massive shark's approach.

I scrambled as hard ask I could around the pole, fighting the resistance of the water with my fear. I felt more than saw the shark open its mouth and braced myself for the inevitable. My whole vision was full of teeth, I thrust out my hand and slammed it against the shark's nose, hoping to propel myself out of reach. The shark clamped down when it felt my hand touch it, missing one of my legs by less than a few inches.

My shoulder scraped against the pole I was holding onto and I lost my hold on it. Nemo was still advancing on me, pressing against me as he opened his mouth again. All of my focus was on keeping my hands pressed against his nose and my legs free from his teeth.

My lungs were burning, my mind reeling and my heart felt like it was bursting from my chest. The shark bit down again, tearing into the fabric of my ghillie leggings. He thrashed sideways and hit the pole, ripping open my pants and taking some of the material with him.

Just as I thought he was going to come at me again, he turned, only to hit the next pole down the line. Something wrapped around my arm and I thrashed wildly away from the source. It gripped tighter and I spun, finally taking my eyes off the shark towards the new threat. Hart floated there, her eyes determined and her short orange hair swaying in the current. She pulled on me, her other hand on another pole further underneath the dock. I stopped fighting and immediately moved with her, further under the dock and away from Nemo. We made it to the other side, swimming out of the shadows and straight up.

As soon as my head broke the surface I gasped for air, trying to alleviate my lung's need for oxygen. Strong hands were gripping my upper arms and pulling me up within seconds. I looked up and saw both Badge and Anni crouched down, each holding onto one of my arms. Hart was climbing up beside us with a little help from Kraw. I wondered briefly when he'd gotten there, but my curiosity was gone as soon as it came as I felt my knees touch the dock.

I crumbled forward, resting on my hands and knees as soon as the two older men released me. Badge knelt in front of me and patted my back as Anni strode away behind him. I was sucking in air like a vacuum cleaner. It felt like I'd never get enough to sate my lungs again.

"Do you see him?" Hart asked, sounding like she was also a little out of breath.

"No. But the water ain't red, so I think that's a good sign…" Anni mumbled. I tried to wrap my head around what they were saying. Him? Water? My eyes widened and I glanced around at everyone up on the dock with me.

 _Anni, Badge, Shenny, Hart and Kraw… Whose miss… Demonic!_

I staggered upright, Badge clinging onto my arm, probably to make sure I didn't fall off the dock again.

"Whoah lass, take it easy," he said softly. I met his eyes with my own frightened ones. "He'll be fine."

"But-!" I started and stopped, my mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. Badge just nodded and rubbed my arms softly like he was trying to warm me up. "He jumped in with a shark!" I unnecessarily yelled out the obvious.

"So what if I did?" I heard a low, rough voice behind me and spun around. My eyes widened at the sight of Demonic climbing up onto the dock behind me.

"It would take more than a shark to take this asshat down!" Kraw laughed, stepping forward and offering his hand down to Demonic. He took it and stood up, looking calmer than what should have been possible. Aside from his wet clothes, he looked like nothing had even happened.

He looked down at me and raised an eyebrow. "The look on your face is a bit unnerving. Your eyes are buggier than a meganeura's." I had no idea what the hell a mega-whatever was so his joke was lost to me. As He continued to look at me, I suddenly felt foolish for causing everyone so much trouble. He sighed then and turned away from me, "I'm going to change," he mumbled quietly to Anni as he walked past him.

I watched him walk away, my brow furrowed. "I didn't thank him…" I sighed quietly to myself. Badge heard me though and chuckled.

"You'll get another chance there, lass." he grinned at me and began to lead me back towards the storehouse. Hart came up beside us, the helmet in her hands. She offered it to me and I glared at the reflective metal. She laughed softly and we continued on. Anni, Kraw and Shenny walked along beside us, talking animatedly about what had just happened.

My pants ripped, my whole body soaked and my heart still jumpy, I tried to focus on how Hart and Demonic had both basically risked themselves to save me. I took comfort in the fact once again that I wasn't alone anymore.

* * *

So accident proof... Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Tell me, whose your favorite character so far of everyone Horizon has met? ;)


	14. Traders and Pirates

I waved at the figures on the beach that were slowly fading away as we got further from them. Hart and Badge were talking idly about the shark incident and I listened quietly.

"Demonic leapt right onto the back of the megalodon while you went under to retrieve Horizon. Probably to surprise the thing. And let me tell you, it was definitely surprised. I felt it hit the underneath of the dock when it thrashed to try and throw Demonic off." I chewed my lower lip at Badge's words. That must have been why it had suddenly turned away from me just as I was sure it was going to chomp down on me.

"I was surprised by his plan. It was completely rash to jump in on the side the shark was on. But there wasn't really much time for me to argue, you know?" Hart mumbled, I could feel them both look at me and my head lowered a little in shame.

"Well, it worked out. Went off without a hitch I'd say," Badge exclaimed proudly. I was having trouble seeing how they could feel so light after something so heavy had just happened. Or maybe that was just the way I was seeing it.

"Why are you making that face?" I jumped as Hart's voice came from right beside me and I looked up in her face. "What are you pouting for?"

I was completely taken aback by the question. Did she really not care that she had just risked her life for me? "W-well, I don't…" I paused, not even knowing what to say. Badge chuckled softly behind us from his post on the rudder causing both of us to turn his way.

"Lass, you're part of our family now. It's only natural we would want to protect you," he smiled softly at me.

Busted. Somehow he always knew...

"But to risk your lives…" I began to argue but Hart cut me off with a sarcastic laugh.

"Are you kidding me? A shark ain't got nothin' on me. Personally, I'm a little offended you'd think I could go down that easily," she glared at me, but I could tell there was no real malice in her eyes.

"Hart and Demonic knew what they were doing. There's no reason to feel guilty. They acted on their own accord. It was their decision," Badge said decisively, though his tone remained soft and reassuring. His voice soothed my inner turmoil more than his words did and I sighed in resignation. I set my shoulders and returned to my job at the front of the raft.

Before I knew it, a couple hours had passed and the sun was beginning it's descent already. I was looking up at the clear blue sky, watching the birds that Badge had informed me were called pelagornis and ichthyornis. I thought those were mouthfuls so I decided to call them pelicans and seagulls. It was easier that way. Badge had just chuckled softly when I had told him.

"We're going in towards land, stop daydreaming," Hart's voice cut into my thoughts. I didn't hesitate and immediately jumped up and began doing my share of the work.

"We got another tribe to trade with here?" I looked toward the shore excitedly.

"No."

My head spun around quickly at her terse reply. Her eyes were vigilant and her stance was rigid. I began to chew my lower lip at the expression on her face. Something had her on guard but I could tell right now was not the time to talk when I looked back at Badge and saw that his expression was also grim.

I tensed up, not knowing what kind of danger was looming nearby that could make both of them act so sullen. I cast my eyes around, searching.

"Pay attention to what you're doing," Hart hissed quietly at me. I jumped, realizing I had let my ropes go slack. Frowning, I pulled on them again, making the left side of the sail taut again. I cast Hart a quick apologetic look and she just shook her head. My anxiety was increasing tenfold every second that passed.

A grouping of large rocks protruded from the shallows where we were heading. That was when I noticed the fog that seemed to be rolling towards us. My eyes widened a little at the sight. It was like a huge blanket was unfolding over the land.

"In amongst those boulders," Badge said, an edge to his voice. Hart's only acknowledgment that she heard him was a slight nod. Then she turned her attention onto me.

"Tie that rope down, and do NOT release the one beside it no matter what. You run us into these rocks, and I'll throw you overboard," Hart grumbled as she kept her eyes forward.

I gulped. No pressure…

I did as I was told and slowly we navigated the turns without a hitch all the while Hart issued orders to me in hushed tones. Though she was being quiet, her voice held all the authority needed to make a trained soldier snap to attention.

Me? I was sweating bullets.

The fog reached us just before we slowed to a stop and I risked a quick look around at the other two. Hart was donning her quiver of arrows, her bow already in hand and ready to use. I swallowed hard and looked to Badge for an explanation.

My eyes widened disbelievingly. He was sliding on pieces of flak armor as quietly as possible. He bent and picked something up, turning to me. I noticed it was the pike that Trick had given me. He stepped in front of me and held it out.

"Put on your chitin, Lass." His voice was low and commanding but I could tell he was trying not to freak me out. "I'll explain while you get geared up."

I nodded, taking my pike from his grasp. I crossed over towards the chest and opened the lid. As I began fitting the pieces onto my body, Badge's voice sounded from behind me.

"We aren't meaning to scare you Lass. There's a good chance nothing will happen, but it's better to be on the safe side," he began and I cast him a questioning look over my shoulder. "This fog puts us at a serious disadvantage to a tribe that is set up around here. They… enjoy attacking under the cover of it."

I raised an eyebrow. "They're pirates?" My voice was so quiet I barely heard myself.

"Pirates, bandits, ravagers, scavengers, raiders… I just call them murderers," Hart growled quietly. I tried to study the expression on her face but the fog was so thick now that I could barely make out her features. Badge was standing closer to me, so I could see the sad expression on his face as he looked towards Hart. I frowned.

"They call themselves The Titans. They're a large tribe with strange beliefs and a thirst for violence. They-"

"They're cowards, that's what they are," Hart snarled, cutting badge short and climbing off the raft up onto one of the large rocks we were surrounded by. She disappeared into the fog and I almost called out to her but snapped my mouth shut. When my frantic eyes found Badge, he gave my shoulder a calming pat.

"Don't worry about her. This is her element," he said simply before gesturing to the rest of my armor. I forced myself to push back my anxiety and got back to donning the rest of the chitin pieces as quietly as I could manage.

"Why would she call them cowards? I mean… we're the ones hiding right now." I muttered. "Not that I want to charge in and fight!" I added on hastily, holding my hands out in front of me as if trying to stop something.

"Because they only attack in situations that they know they can win. They overwhelm their victims with ambushes and outnumbering them. Usually for every one of their victims there is three of them. Honor doesn't exist in that tribe." Badge's voice was so morose, my body tensed. That was when I realized I was shivering. And not because of the cold that had swept in with the dense blanket of fog.

Water droplets were forming on Badge's flak chestpiece and eventually one would cascade down, taking every other droplet in its path with it. I imagined each one as a group of pirates or raiders slashing through random survivors, hacking and killing each one they came across. Leaving nothing but an empty trail behind them.

"Lass?"

I jumped at Badge's voice, tearing my eyes away from the water droplets and the destructive scene they had caused to well up in my mind. My gaze shot up to his face as my hand clasped my chest just over my heart. His face softened as our eyes met. I could tell he was just trying to comfort me.

"Everything is going to be alright," he said, holding out his arm to me. I stepped forward and pressed myself to his side without hesitation. I felt weak. Like a child clinging to their father's leg as he saved them from a spider. I scowled inwardly at myself. I needed to be stronger. I needed to improve my skills so I could defend not just myself but my friends too. Despite Badge's calm demeanor, I could feel how tense his arm was around my shoulder.

I was just about to force my trembling body to stand up straight when a sound caught my ears. Badge's arm tightened around my shoulders as I strained my hearing for the noise. My eyes widened when I realized what I was hearing were voices.

Muffled words were being carried over the water to where we were hiding and from what I could tell, they didn't sound worried at all about any possible dangers. I shivered again, thinking it must be the tribe that Badge had been telling me about. Were they about to find us?

"They're drunk," Badge said suddenly, his voice barely a whisper beside my head. He looked both disappointed and sad.

I was confused by his reaction and kept watching his face. He looked down at me briefly but he must have noticed the huge question mark I was wearing on my face because he deliberated on it further.

"They're coming from the same direction we did. Probably fellow traders... They must have been some distance behind us, because I hadn't seen them. If they don't quiet down, they'll bring The Titans right to us…" he trailed off.

"Shouldn't we warn them?" I asked without realizing I had even opened my mouth. Badge shook his head slowly.

"Too late now. They're coming."

Sure enough, just before he had finished speaking, I heard drums start up in the distance on our other side toward shore. My hands gripped the shaft of my pike so hard, my knuckles turned white. I stood there beside Badge, completely frozen as the drums got closer and closer.

The voices on the other raft had lost their carefree and playful tones. Now they were quieter and curious sounding. I listened hard to both, the drums and the drunk traders as each of them got closer.

A thump right beside me on the dock made me jump so hard I rattled Badge's armor. It took everything in me not to scream out and blow our cover as my head whipped around to the source. Hart was standing there, her face reminding me of a war maiden who was unafraid to shed blood.

"We're surrounded. There are three traders on the raft, and four of The Titans' ships are spreading out around us. As far as I could tell, they don't know we're here. But just one small break in the fog…" Hart whispered.

Badge nodded, releasing his hold on me and striding over to the chest. He pulled out his own quiver and arrows, looking back at Hart. "Which raft should we hit first?"

Taking Badge's lead, Hart knocked one of her arrows. "The one closest to shore. There's only two passengers. It would be quick."

"And the other rafts wouldn't know they're gone until it was too late," Badge murmured, nodding.

"We can navigate the raft through a few more of these rocks, and break out of their ranks too if we go in that direction," Hart added. Badge just nodded then turned to me.

I gulped.

"Stay here and prepare the sail to take off. As soon as we get back, we'll have to high-tail it out of here." Badge commanded. I nodded nervously, but jumped to my task. I watched as Hart and Badge both climbed onto the closest rock and soon I was alone in the fog. I began untying the first rope when suddenly a shrill scream sounded behind me.

I dropped the rope and clapped my hands over my mouth as I jumped and whirled around.

"No! Please don't hurt us!" A woman pleaded.

"We have goods for trade, we'll give you want you wa-" the second voice, male, ended in a guttural moan as another high-pitched scream sounded again.

"You killed him!" the female voice and I was assuming the owner of the screams yelled out. Disbelief colored her frantic tone. "We never di-"

"Shut up bitch! Or I'll-"

"Don't hurt her! Please, we'll do anything," another man's voice jumped in. I spun back around and started working the ropes as fast as my shaking hands would let me. I kept fumbling as the conversation kept up behind me. They sounded so close…

"Ha! Funny. Bargaining won't work. We plan to take what we want anyways. With or without your approval," said a menacing voice. I was panting for breaths now.

"Please, we don't want any tr-" again, the sound of a painful moan and the voice fell silent. I could clearly hear the girl wailing now. Tears stung my eyes, knowing I could do nothing to help her. Laughter rose up around me and I fought the urge to bolt in the same direction Hart and Badge had gone.

Doubts began to whirl around in my mind. What if they had been ambushed? What if they left me behind to die? What if they just took the raft from the other men and decided I wasn't worth coming back for?

The jeering laughter and random comments kept flowing to me from behind along with the woman's sobs. I could tell the men weren't going to give her a quick death like they had her male companions. The thought of what they were doing to her both sickened me and frightened me further.

I pulled the last rope tight and-

"Well, well, well. What have we here?" A quiet, dangerous voice spoke up to my left. My head whipped around in the man's direction and I stumbled backwards, away from him. "All alone, are we? I was afraid I was going to have to wait my turn on the blond, but if I have you all to myself…" he dropped down off the rock he had been standing and landed on the deck of our raft. He took slow, deliberate steps as he ran his hand over the rudder and shit me an evil grin.

My mouth went dry, my teeth clenched together tightly and my heart felt like it was trying to beat its way out of my chest.

"What's your name, pretty thing?" he asked tauntingly.

Suddenly my mind snapped back to reality and began working again. I wasn't a helpless little girl. I had the means to protect myself and I could do it. I WOULD do it.

My eyes shot over to where I had set my pike down while I was preparing the ropes. I cursed myself for not grabbing it at the first sound of his voice. Now he was blocking my way to it.

"No answer? Saber got your tongue?" he said mockingly, taking another casual step towards me. My eyes flicked in the direction Hart and Badge had disappeared in.

"Now, now. Don't go making any noise. See? You'll bring all my tribe mates bearing down on us and then I won't get you to myself." My eyes moved back to him, sizing him up. He had a nasty, toothy grin plastered on his face as his green eyes cast themselves up and down my body. I felt like they were devouring me and I grimaced.

"Are you going to cry and scream like that other one?" he ticked his head in the direction of the cacophony of laughter broken only by the other poor girl's wails. He was standing right in front of me now, and I still hadn't done anything to protect myself! I sent my pike one more fleeting look just before he reached for me. I jumped back, putting myself dangerously close to the edge of the raft and barely avoided his grasp. He scowled and reached for me again.

I lunged into him, tucking my shoulders as I rammed into his sternum. My body collided with something hard and staggered as I felt one of his hands grab a fistfull of my hair. He yanked, my body unwillingly bent to try and avoid the pain. He pulled again, making me stumble in my disorientation. A moment later, I landed hard on my knees and I felt a hard force drive itself into my side. I gasped out, coughing as he released my hair and I landed on my side on the deck. I threw one of my hands up to cover my face and head just as I saw his foot swinging at me again. My other hand was outstretched, trying to deflect his blows. I counted four kicks, each one knocking more and more air from my lungs until it was almost impossible to breathe. Still, I stayed quiet, refusing to give up our position to the rest of his tribe.

Once he stopped, I chanced a look up at him, my vision blurry from unshed tears and my side and abdomen feeling bruised and on fire.

"It's a shame really. You're almost too pretty to kill, but we don't need weak little gits like you hanging around. One-time pleasures basically." His eyes held mine as he leaned over me. "Still, you've got a little fight in you. That'll make this more interesting."

With that, he reached down and fisted his hand in my hair again, painfully yanking me up. A small groan escaped my lips as my battered ribs protested from the motion. I purposely stumbled to the right as I stood, being sure to move myself closer to my only weapon.

"So, where should we start?" He asked, his voice was too close for comfort and I cringed. His grip tightened for a moment but then he spun around quickly, distracted by something. I didn't hesitate. I didn't think.

I just acted.

Ignoring the pain on my scalp as I yanked myself from the man's grasp, I lunged across the deck and spun back around to face my assailant as soon as my hands gripped the shaft. My body was telling me to run in the opposite direction, but I pushed that feeling down and launched myself back towards my attacker.

My entire vision was red aside from his chest and the tip of my pike as I closed the distance between us. His hand reached across his chest to pull at something on his hip, but he was too late. With my momentum, the resistance his armor provided gave way quickly and the metal tip of my pike disappeared into his flesh. His hand froze and he opened his mouth, a painful groan escaped him.

Then he smiled again. My breath caught as everything I had just done caught up with me and I gasped, stumbling back and away from him. He sank to his knees in front of me, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. "Seems I underestimated you," he muttered just before he coughed up some more blood. He collapsed forward and I just stared as his breathing stopped.

"That makes two of us…" I whispered, clenching my hands together to stop their shaking.

"Three of us. Now come on, we need to get moving." Hart's voice made me jump as I looked up at her. She was slipping her bow over her shoulder as she dropped down onto the deck much like the man had.

"Hart…" I started, but was interrupted.

"Get on the rudder. I'll guide us out of here," she ordered quietly.

"What about-"

"We don't have time for a mental breakdown. Just get moving." She spoke over me again. I nodded and moved into place.

* * *

I am soooooo sorry for the forever to upload stuff... You know... Ragnarok came out on Xbox... And well, new stuff, starting over... Being awesome. All that junk ;) Been verrrry slowly working on this chapter for a month DX It got to the point where I just needed to finish it for you all! Sorry if it fell short of your expectations! Tell me how you think I can improve the next chapters!


	15. The Red Obelisk

My pike clattered down on the deck beside where I was sitting, the tip still covered in blood as Hart walked back away from me and towards the body of the man I had killed.

 _I killed a man._

The thought was enough to cripple my mind and I felt numb all over. I watched as Hart pushed the man off the deck without a second glance at him before she returned to her post on the ropes. I didn't even hear the splash that I knew his body should have made. Instead, my eyes searched the fog behind us where I could just make out the fiery blur of The Titans raft that Badge and Hart had commandeered. Apparently they had easily taken out the two people on board before Badge ransacked the whole thing and set it ablaze and on its own course down the coast opposite us. That way, when The Titans would go to investigate, by the time they realized it was a diversion, we'd be far ahead of them in the opposite direction.

Badge figured they would probably assume we had attacked from land anyway, and that they wouldn't even think about searching for another raft down the coast. I hoped that was true.

I kept watching until the faint orange glow was swallowed up completely by the fog. Then my eyes dropped to my blood-smeared pike that was sitting beside me. The man's face resurfaced in my mind's eye as he had grinned at me, even as he was dying and blood was trickling from the corners of his mouth… I swallowed hard and closed my eyes tightly, trying to erase the vision from my memory.

"You alright Lass?" Badge's soft voice came from behind me, but I didn't react. I couldn't. I killed a man. I shoved my pike through his chest and ended his life. I had been prepared to protect myself from dinosaurs… But killing another human being just seemed wrong to me. "Horizon?" His voice insisted again just before I felt a warm weight land on my shoulder. I jerked slightly, opening my eyes again.

"I killed him," I said flatly. It was the only thought that was consuming my mind at that moment. I didn't know what else to think about.

"You did what you had to do Lass," he tried consoling me softly.

"What right did I have to do that?" I muttered. Hart scoffed and I frowned as I looked up at her.

"What right? So, are you saying you didn't have the right to protect yourself?" She asked. Her voice was anything but soft and reassuring. Talk about tough love. I was just about to respond again when she held up her hand. "No. Don't even spew any of that shit about it not being your right to decide who lives or dies. It's as simple as this. He was going to kill you. He was going to do worse than kill you in fact. Which made him even less human than the creatures that walk this land. You protected yourself just like you would have from any other predator that was looking to kill you. So stop whining, clean off your weapon and move on. Rid yourself of the guilt and by all means, grow up."

"Hart-" Badge spoke up roughly.

"She needs to hear this Badge. She can't be coddled, or we'll just have another Venus on our hands. I've seen the determination she's shown to want to improve herself. She's holding herself back by holding onto weak ideals from her past life that she can't even remember."

"I'm right here, you know." I grumbled, finally finding my voice.

"Are you? Because just a few moments ago, you looked like you were lost in the pit of self-wallowing. Have you decided to climb back out and rejoin us?" She quipped.

I glared at her as I stood up, clenching my fists at my sides. "I'm sorry that I actually have morals and don't just kill whomever I want. Killing other humans makes you just as bad as The Titans!" I yelled back at her.

"Is that what you think? I just walk around killing people? I suppose I just decided to let everyone in Guardian's tribe live out of mercy. Oh, and let's not forget Anni's tribe too." She took a step closer to me and leaned her face closer to mine. "I kill when it's necessary. I don't revel in it, I don't rejoice in it. THAT is what separates me from those monsters. And if you EVER compare me to them again, I'll blur those lines just for you."

Her voice was cold as she turned away from me again and went back to checking ropes. There wasn't really anything for her to do and I could tell she was just giving herself a reason to go back to ignoring me. I glared at her back for a couple moments longer but then I lowered my eyes. I wasn't angry at Hart. Not really. I was angry at The Titans and what they had done to those other traders and what that one guy had planned on doing to me. Hart had just been an outlet for me to release that anger on. I avoided meeting Badge's eyes as I worked through my thoughts. I needed to figure this out on my own. I bent down and grabbed my pike, walked to the edge of the raft and knelt down. I dunked it in the water and washed the stranger's blood from it while I meditated on Hart's words. They made sense. This was a different world. Different ideals and means were going to be needed to survive here.

My pike came clean right around the same time the weight of what I had done lifted off my shoulders the more I had thought about it. I wasn't going to make it in this place if I kept up with my old and predated thoughts and morals. That thought was almost comical. Dinosaurs used to be outdated… And now, what I had believed to be a civil thought process was what was now extinct. I sighed and stood up, looking up towards the front of the raft. I met Hart's eyes and she just stared back. Without saying anything, I just nodded and she dipped her head once in return before returning to what she was doing.

"You feeling better now, Lass?" Badge asked as I walked back towards the chest and began removing my chitin. I nodded. It was going to take time getting used to this change, but I knew it was necessary if I wanted to survive. And I definitely wanted to survive. To prove myself.

I took up the job of being lookout, not that it was that helpful just now due to all the fog, but at least it gave me something to do rather than just sit there, twiddling my thumbs.

Eventually the fog dissipated and when I looked in towards shore, nothing looked even remotely close to being familiar. The landscape looked more open, less hilly and cliffy. I rolled my eyes at my own brilliance at being able to describe the geography when I noticed it. Another tower, just like the green one, but this one was red instead. It was still a bit off, but if I had to guess, we'd reach it sometime tonight. It was just about dusk now, so it would actually probably be very early morning by the time we reached it.

"Red ob. It's where the tribe, Wolf's Scat is setup. They're our next stop. They've actually turned themselves into a marketplace of sorts. Wolf's Scat is the leading tribe, but many small tribes make up the whole area. They all sort of work together. It's the closest thing to a town or city that we have on the Ark." Badge informed me and my eyes widened further. If that was even possible.

"Like a community…" I mused in wonder as I thought of the possibility. "So… We'll get to see the.. Ob?" I paused a moment, testing out the name. "What is the Ob anyways?"

"Obelisk. They're mysterious to say the least. Wolf's Scat has the Red Ob guarded to protect some of the other tribe's members from messing with it. Apparently people have just… disappeared when trying to mess around with it. So they warn people about the dangers and encourage them to stay away. But there's no harm in just looking at it if that's what you want." Badge said softly.

The thought of it excited me a little which helped improve my mood slightly. Suddenly I didn't feel all doom and gloom anymore. I nodded enthusiastically, "I'd like that very much." I allowed myself a small smile and Badge grinned back at me.

I turned back to look at the Ob and began coming up with tons of different scenarios in my head of how or why people had gone missing.

I thought that the closer we got to the Ob, the easier it would be for me to make out the shape of the huge building, but as the distance between us and it shrank, so did the distance between the sun and the horizon as nightfall descended upon us. I hadn't even noticed that Hart was tying ropes and moving them around again in preparation to stop until just now.

"Are we docking?" I asked curiously. I had been under the impression that Red Ob was going to be our next stop.

"Not docking. Just stopping here for a few hours of sleep. We all need it." Badge answered me and that was when I noticed the tip of a large boulder protruding from the water near us. Once we were beside it, Hart jumped onto it, wrapping a few ropes around it and tying us securely to the land-provided anchor.

"What about leed-Moby-thingies?" I interjected when Hart plopped back down onto the raft.

"We're too close to shore for them to bother us." Hart muttered.

"Just don't fall in Lass and you'll be safe enough." Badge wrapped his arm around my shoulders and I sighed softly.

We pulled out sleeping bags for each of us and bedded down for the night. "I'll take first watch." Hart muttered, climbing back up on top of the rock with her bow and a small sack of something. She began rubbing the contents of the bag onto her bow, completely ignoring Badge and I as we chatted softly about the community of survivors at Red Ob.

The calming sound of the waves, the star-streaked sky and the soft red hue from the giant tower did wonders for the inner turmoil I was feeling from the day's earlier activities, and it didn't take long before I was nodding off. Sleep came, induced by the rhythmic rocking of the raft on the waves and the far-off calls of creatures on the shoreline.

* * *

I jumped up from my sleeping bag, grabbing for my pike as something landed across my face. There was chuckling from behind me and I turned to see Hart standing there beside Badge. I looked down at my feet and saw that my assailant had been nothing more than the rope that had been used to tie the raft to the makeshift anchor.

"Good reaction time, Lass. It's go-time though." Badge continued chuckling whereas Hart still hadn't even acknowledged me. She was already busying herself with the mast and her usual job of tying and untying ropes. Badge was back on the rudder.

I gave him a confused look. "Why wasn't I ever woken for a watch-shift?" I mumbled sleepily, getting to work by folding up sleeping bags.

"Was no need. Hart let me sleep longer than was necessary, and I didn't plan on being stopped long enough for three shifts to be utilized." Badge said simply with a grin.

"Besides, with the emotional wreck you were yesterday, sleep was definitely something you needed." Hart mumbled and I shighed. I wasn't going to fight her on that. I did have a mini mental breakdown. One that I was totally ashamed of now. Even though I still didn't think I was completely in the wrong. But, that was besides the point. What mattered now was getting stronger, so that didn't happen to me again.

By the time I finished rolling up the bedding and putting it all away, we were already under way. Turns out Hart didn't really need my help much with ropes, I just made her job easier by handling all the small, menial tasks. But I didn't mind that. I just wanted to be helpful.

Something bumped against the bottom of the boat and I shot Badge a questioning look. "Don't fall in." He muttered and gestured towards the side of the raft, apparently giving me permission and/or incentive to look in the water. I crept to the edge and what I saw didn't make any sense to me at first. It was like a little whirlpool of dark pieces of cloth gliding over one another, almost breaching the surface here and there. Once my eyes focused, my mouth dropped open.

"What are those things?!" I shrank back a little from the edge of the raft.

"Mantas. And a basilosaurus. Think of it as a whale sort of-"

"Like a Moby-thing?!" I exclaimed, now completely tossing myself away from the surface of the water.

"No. Basils are completely peaceful. They wouldn't attack you. But the mantas surrounding it. That's a different story. They flank a basil because they're like scavengers and feed off the bits and pieces of fish that the basil leaves behind during its meals. But that many together, they wouldn't hesitate to group up and hunt down a tiny, helpless human in the water. The basils around here are often fed by the tribes throwing out their unwanted fish parts. So they crowd the rafts, unfortunately bringing the mantas with them. Though, to an experienced fisherman, spearing a manta is good eating for quite a few people."

I yawned softly, but was enjoying listening to Badge's little lecture. As soon as he had mentioned food however, my stomach grumbled quietly. I covered it with my hand reassuringly. Badge, having noticed my slight movement pointed towards the preserving bin that held our food. "If you're hungry, now's as good a time as any to eat. Not much to do until we dock." He grinned.

I smiled as I happily accepted his offer and pulled out a couple pieces of jerky. There was another bump under the raft and I grabbed the bin for support. "Does it have to swim so close to us?" I complained and Badge laughed.

"He's probably just reminding us that he's here in case we have any scraps to share."

I was about to give a retort but stopped when I saw another raft come into view. With closer inspection, I could see four men sitting on catwalks that were built out over the water and each of them was holding a fishing rod. My mouth dropped open and I pointed. The dorsal fin of a mega-whatever shark was clearly circling their raft and, mouth still hanging open I turned to Badge. He just shrugged, chuckling at the look on my face. Once we got close enough, one of the fishermen greeted us. I noticed he had a shotgun laid across his lap. The others all had guns as well. I made myself a mental note to ask Badge why we didn't have cool gear like that. Seriously. What the hell? I looked down at my pike with disdain.

"What brings you all to Red?" The fisherman asked with a friendly smile.

"Just here to do some trading. How're the fish biting today?" Badge asked.

"It'd be better if these blasted basils and sharks would stop eating our catches before we can reel them in!" The man shook his head and to drive his point, whacked the passing shark with his fishing rod. I gasped, but the large fish didn't even flinch. It's large tan and green striped body just kept on it's slow path around the raft.

"It's getting to the point where we're going to have to harpoon a few of them again," one of the other fishermen noted dryly as the shark swam underneath him.

"We should make preparations to work on that starting tomorrow," said the first fisherman. Then he turned to us again, "Any of you looking to make a few ingots worth of pay during your stay?"

I raised my right eyebrow and looked over at Badge questioningly. "Thanks for the offer, but we don't plan to stay more than a day. We'll be setting off at dawn."

"Ah, well good luck to you on your travels!" The man smiled and waved at us again. Hart took that as her queue to release her ropes again so that we continued moving. I couldn't stop the excitement that was growing in my chest the closer we got to the obelisk. My eyes locked onto the large, metallic tower and I gasped.

"It's floating!" I mused in awe.

"Aye. It's a mystery many people want to try to figure out." Badge murmured softly.

"Scientists and religious leaders fight over the Green Obelisk that is near our home." Hart grumbled like it was all stupid in her opinion.

I shot the two of them questioning looks. "There are two tribes mostly who are constantly at war with each other over the land nearest that Ob. To go near that area is to enter a war zone." He sounded disappointed at that thought.

"Do they ever bother Wolf's Scat about this Obelisk?" I asked quizzically.

"I would be surprised if we didn't see at least one "prophet" preaching among the masses about how they're desecrating sacred grounds and the like." Badge said diplomatically.

"They're all idiots." Hart mumbled. When I looked at her, she just shrugged. "Much more important things to be doing with one's time than fighting over an unsolvable mystery."

"That makes sense to me." I nodded.

"Aye. And that would be why we keep our noses out of their business. Because we have better things to do with our time. Right Hart?" Badge asked, a little force was inserted into his question. I lifted my right eyebrow questioningly as I looked back over at Hart. She rolled her eyes.

"I punched one of the so-called, "prophets" last time we were here and told him to shove his religion up his ass and that the only thing I worshipped was survival." She shrugged and I couldn't stop the laugh that spilled out between my lips. "See? At least someone appreciates my loquaciousness." She shot a pointed look at Badge.

Still giggling, I looked over at him too.

"Don't encourage her." He mumbled, but he was sporting a grin of his own as he looked back out towards the shore. Other rafts and docks were coming into sight and I noticed with extreme giddiness that the dock spaced out a long ways up the river that was beside the Red Ob. I rubbed my hands together in excitement as buildings and people began coming into view.

I was so ready for this next adventure.

* * *

Yay! Next chapter is up and it only took me... forever again ;) But! I have a computer at my disposal once again! So, I no longer have to spend 8 hours typing up a single chapter using only my thumbs on my phone's keyboard anymore... Life just got easier :D Hope you're all enjoying this (: I'd still like to hear from you all! Thanks for all the follows and reviews I've gotten so far ^_^


	16. Don't Stress

"Can we go explore now?" I asked for like the umpteenth time.

Badge chuckled.

"I'm with Horizon this time. You seriously think we're gonna get anymore customers?" Hart asked, cutting off whatever Badge had been about to say as she gestured up at the orange hue that was spreading across the sky. I looked at her questioningly. I hadn't thought she'd be interested in exploring the Ob with me. She caught my gaze and shook her head. "I just want to get out and stretch my legs. This raft is starting to drive me insane."

I bit my bottom lip but shrugged my shoulders. I'd take it. It would still get me off the raft and exploring the community. I turned back to Badge and held my hands up in front of me like I was pleading. He laughed again, shaking his head slowly.

"Alright, alright. When you're done sight-seeing, you know where I'll be." He caved and I jumped on him, throwing my arms around his broad shoulders in a hug.

"Thank you!"

"Yeah, yeah. Leave the old man to do all the work why don't you?" He joked good-naturedly and patted me on the back.

"I'm sure you'll be just fine," Hart rolled her eyes and started to walk off. I shot Badge one last exuberant smile before darting after the orange-haired girl. Walking down the docks, we passed other trader rafts, all of them calling out what they had for trade in loud voices that carried on the wind. Mixed in with their voices, I heard the callings of one of the so-called 'prophets' Badge and Hart had told me about. I smiled, shaking my head back and forth softly.

There were so many people bustling about on the dock. Even as we were walking another raft was making its way down the river towards the direction we'd just come from. Our raft had been docked at the very edge, farthest inland. Badge had pointed towards land and told me if I kept going in that direction, I'd find a swamp and the redwoods beyond that. He had also informed me that both said places were extremely dangerous and to stay away.

A warning to which I fully intended on listening to.

We were almost to the entrance to the Ob when I stopped in my tracks. Hart glanced at me curiously and then followed my gaze. There, off to our left, next to one of the rafts was a "ducky" dinosaur, saddled up and carrying goods on it like a pack-mule.

"It's called a parasaur. Never seen one? They're far from being dangerous." Hart sighed, clearly unhappy with my ability to become side-tracked so easily.

"It has a saddle on…" I stated the obvious.

"Good job. Now can you tell me it's color?" Hart grumbled and started walking again. "Some creatures on this land are in fact, able to be tamed and made useful. Your dodo, though apparently tamed, still remains useless however."

I glared half-heartedly at her back as I continued to follow her. I glanced one last time at the parasaur as we passed it but then shook my head. I supposed it wasn't that far-fetched. I mean, I remember riding horses and such in my past… At least, I felt like I did.

"What is your business in this area?" A voice spoke up from beside us and we both looked over to see a man in flak armor walking towards us.

"Heya Scoot," Hart grinned knowingly at the new man.

"Hart? I thought that might have been you!" He strode forward and, to my surprise, went straight for a hug with Hart. I half expected her to flip him over her shoulder until I saw her hug him back. My jaw dropped.

"Been a while." She said as they separated.

"Indeed it has. And who is this?" His gaze fell to me and I stretched my hand out towards him. He had very short, almost buzzed-cut brown hair and a mustache and beard that was trimmed short that framed his mouth.

"The name's Horizon," I said politely.

"Scooter," He replied as he grabbed my hand. Instead of shaking it though, he pulled me against his hard armor and hugged me as well. My eyes nearly bugged out of my head. "New to The Guardians?" He asked and I nodded.

"Picked her up down near Rock Isle in the South." Hart added and Scooter nodded slowly, giving me an appraising look.

"How have things been with The Takers lately? Need help at all?" Scooter turned his attention back to Hart and off of me. I nonchalantly took a step away from him as I glanced up at the Red Ob.

"Nothing we haven't been able to handle yet. Had a small almost-run-in with The Titans on our way here though." Hart grumbled.

"Ah yea, we heard they took down a trader ship. Also heard they lost one of their own too…" Scooter gave Hart a knowing look and she grinned mischievously.

"I have no idea what that look is for," Hart feigned ignorance which only made Scooter laugh. "Horizon, if you wanna go check out the Ob, go ahead. It's pretty walled off, nothing will happen." Hart offered. Part of me figured she wanted to be alone with Scooter and I shot her a sly smile.

"Say no more." I said and started to walk away. It didn't take long until their voices were swallowed up by the sounds of all the traders around them. I stepped around the cliffside that had, until that moment, been blocking all but the highest section of the Ob from my vision. I stumbled to a stop as I admired it. There was no way that even the land around where the Ob was located was natural. A large, metallic pillar with a red light in the center of it, hovered high above a circular protrusion of earth with two land bridges leading up to it.

My eyes slowly followed the pillar of red light that exited out the bottom of the Obelisk down to a small pole of some sort out in the middle of the platform. I clamped my mouth shut and immediately began making my way up the ramp that led to the nearest land bridge. Down below me, the platform was surrounded by water but it was dark enough out now that I couldn't see the contents or if the small lagoon had any inhabitants. I wasn't too interested to find out either. I found myself almost hugging the cliffside after that.

The closer I got to the land bridge, the more the air around me seemed to take on the red hue of the beam of light at the center of it all. I stopped at the start of the skinny pathway that had no walls on either side for protection from falling. "Well, I guess it's safe to assume I'm afraid of heights almost as much as the water…" I muttered to myself with a frown.

After taking a deep breath, I took the first step out onto the land bridge and crossed it up to the edge of the platform. My palms were wet and clammy by the time I crossed it.

The plants weren't the deep green palms and fern-like underbrush that I was used to seeing. These were large shrubs that were a yellow in color, made almost orange from the red light reflecting off of them. I ran my hand over the leaves of the nearest ones as I passed them. My eyes took in the ground on which I was standing, which had metallic bars protruding from it that looked like they made a large circle around the Obelisk. The mysteries and possibilities that came with this place assailed my imagination and I had no idea what to make of it all.

I continued on my path towards the center of it all, where a single, angled post emerged from the ground. The point in which the red beam of light was either coming from, or disappearing into. Which it was, I couldn't tell. I reached my hand out, intending to softly touch the cool metal of the post when-

"Newbie!"

I jumped at the sudden voice and whirled around, my hand clutching at my chest as I tried to quiet my heart. "Trick?! What- How?" I stumbled as he strode towards me.

"We caught wind that a trader's raft with three crew aboard was ambushed by The Titans. We were afraid it was you guys, so I came to check it out." Trick replied nonchalantly as he approached me.

"But that means you would have-"

"I haven't slept in over thirty-some odd hours. I got here as quick as I could. Glad to see you're still in one piece." He smiled as he crossed his arms over his chest. His smile disappeared moments later though as he gestured behind me with his chin. "Haven't you heard about how people go missing when they mess with these things? What were you thinking?"

I don't know why, but I suddenly felt defensive and I bristled. "I wasn't doing anything that would hurt me. I'm not stupid."

Trick held up his hands in front of him. "I was just worried something would happen to ya. Don't get your panties in a bunch."

"Leave my 'panties' out of this. I can take care of myself." I grumbled.

"So I heard." He replied softly. It was so unexpected, I clamped my mouth shut. "How are you doing?"

I studied his expression, looking for any sign of mischief or sarcasm. But his expression looked genuine and I sighed.

"I did what I had to do. It's as simple as that." I looked away from him and back at the post beside me.

"There's nothing 'simple' about taking a life, even if it was to protect your own. But neither is it something that makes you 'bad.' It's a part of this life we have now, of this world we're in. Ok? Try not to beat yourself up over it."

I turned my face back to look at him. "What would you know of how I feel?" I whispered, a slight edge to my voice. What he was saying was striking too close to home. I didn't want to be a 'killer.' I didn't want taking another person's life to become easier. Hart made it sound like it shouldn't even bother me. But I was afraid of that being the case.

"I remember the first time I killed somebody." Trick said softly, there was something in his gaze that held mine. "He was going to kill my friend and I. I had to do something. There was no talking to him. Horrible thing was, he thought he was doing what he needed in order to survive. I'm sure he had fallen on hard times already and didn't trust anyone. We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time when we ran into the poor guy. But, if I had to choose between his life, or my friend's and my own… Whether it makes me selfish or not, I'd have chosen the latter every time. It doesn't ever get easier. But that's why I do what I do. I help others when I can, so that my survival means something. I'm not just taking other's lives for no reason. I give meaning to being here on the Ark. If you do that, it makes it easier to cope. At least, it does for me," he finished with a small, encouraging smile.

I couldn't respond at first. This Trick always confused me and I never knew how to respond to him. It was always easier dealing with the sarcastic, flirty Trick. I sighed and slowly nodded my head. "I'll try." I finally managed to say. What he'd told me helped me more than Hart's 'tough love' had.

"So!" Trick began again, rubbing his hands together. "Have you sated your curiosity about the Red Obelisk yet?" He asked, saying the name of the red pillar in a deeper than normal voice and making mystical hand gestures in the air in front of him.

I grinned, shaking my head in exasperation at him. "Yea, I guess so. I just wish I knew why it was floating…" I mused.

"I told you… Aliens." He mimicked the same hand gestures from a few moments ago and I laughed. "I am truly starving, and all the food is back on the raft. Care to accompany me back?" He took a step back and gestured towards the land bridge I had come up from.

"Scared something may nab you if you go alone?" I quipped as I stepped up beside him.

"Terrified." He mumbled as he fell into step beside me.

"I'll protect you, no worries." I joked.

"I feel so much safer! Thank you!"

"However did you survive without me?" I laughed.

"I have no idea." Trick answered softly and I looked over at him questioningly. He met my gaze, his face completely serious and my smile faded. Then he punched my arm lightly, "Just kidding. If anything, you've made life harder." He jibed and I punched him back. Slightly harder than he had punched me.

"Thanks." I grumbled sarcastically, grinning again. My footsteps slowed as we reached the land bridge and Trick had to adjust his speed to match me. He shot me a questioning look.

"You alright?"

"Yea, yea. Fine. Nothing wrong here." I gave him a reassuring look as I forced my feet to move faster. I kept glancing at the edge closest me though and I guess Trick caught on.

"You're afraid of heights! Aren't you?" He asked suddenly.

"No. It's not the height… It's the idea of falling itself that worries me." I defended myself.

Trick scoffed. "Same. Exact. Thing. Newbie." He shook his head in exasperation and suddenly I felt his arm around my shoulders. I glanced up at him quickly. "Well, I'm definitely not going to fall, so now you have nothing to worry about." He said cockily. I was torn between tossing his arm off and leaning in closer to his chest. But luckily, the land bridge passed quickly and Trick removed his arm on his own. He positioned himself between myself and the side of the pathway with the drop-off and I gave him a small smile.

"Thanks." This time, my voice lacked any hint of sarcasm.

"Not a problem." He smiled softly and we continued on our way. Badge and Hart were already back on Juraship Park and it seemed Scooter had followed them back, talking animatedly to Badge. He stopped as he noticed us though and waved. That was when I noticed the fourth addition to the ship and I felt my smile grow significantly as I rushed to hug Tanner. He dropped to the deck beside the raft just as I reached him and laughed softly as his arms wrapped tightly around me. "Heya Zippy," he muttered and I shook my head.

"Definitely not," I grumbled, smiling up at everyone on the raft over Tanner's shoulder. "I actually-" I began before I was cut-off.

"Looks like you found her, eh Trick? Welcome back, Horizon," Scooter called out before going back to his conversation with Badge.

I immediately ducked my face as I felt my cheeks heat up at his use of my semi-new name. Tanner pulled back from me, pretending to be offended. But his face quickly broke into his playful grin again, "I like it! Even if I wasn't the one who chose it." His smile was contagious and despite my burning cheeks, I grinned back at him.

"Horizon, huh?" Trick's voice was quiet and all too-knowing behind me.

And way too close.

I began to pull out of my hug with Tanner my face getting even warmer as I continued to avoid his gaze. "So-" He began again.

"Shut up." I mumbled, cutting him off as I jumped up onto the raft. I immediately made myself look busy by rearranging all of the wares we still had for trade.

"What are you doing?" Hart's voice stopped me and I looked up at her.

"I'm trying to tidy this mess of a raft up…" I said, going back to what I was doing. I heard Trick chuckling close behind her.

"I'd say you're doing a better job at messing it up." She sighed and I frowned. She was right, in my determination to avoid Trick's gaze, I wasn't really paying attention to what I had been doing. "Maybe you should leave the organising to Badge and myself?" She grumbled and walked away.

"Ahem?" Trick's voice cut in through the sigh I had just been about to let loose and I folded my arms.

"What?" I grumbled, finally meeting his gaze.

"I like it. Like I told you before you left, it suits you." He said softly. I narrowed my eyes. Once again, the Trick that I was beginning to refer to as Not-Annoying Trick was looking back at me, his smile, genuine and sweet.

I didn't know how to respond to that so I just shrugged awkwardly. Trick opened his mouth to say something more, but what he had been planning on saying was lost as a woman's shriek reached us from across the hill beside us.

No one even had any time to say anything before both Trick and Hart were donning their weapons and running off into the shadowy land, not alight with random campfires or torches like the riverside was. I shot a look at at Badge, questioning him with my eyes what I was supposed to do, but he was quickly putting various pieces of his armor on with a shocked looking Scooter beside him watching Trick and Hart's retreating figures. Suddenly I felt something hard press up against my arm, and Tanner was there, holding my pike out to me. I grabbed it as a sense of dread settled over me.

"Just in case," he murmured as he pulled out a sword that I hadn't realised was hanging from his waist. Almost as one, he and Badge headed off in the same direction Trick and Hart had gone, leaving me standing there with Scooter. I thought that was strange. Shouldn't Scooter be running forward to fend off any possible battle? I mean, wasn't he the tribe leader of the alpha tribe of these parts? I shook the confusion off though, I didn't have time to worry about that right now. Instead, I set my shoulders, taking a deep breath as I did so and lurched forward, doing my best to catch up to Badge and Tanner as quickly as I could.

"Make my survival meaningful…" I mumbled quietly but determinedly as I thought back to mine and Trick's previous conversation.

We reached the top of the hill just as a couple of people ran past us frantically. The man seemed completely unhurt whereas the woman had blood covering her whole right side. I forced my gaze away from the two and looked ahead again, my steps faltering as I took in the sight. A tiny wood cabin sat there, the trees around it had been removed and it looked rather homey. Aside from the smashed in wall and the two tyrannosaurus rexes that were hovering around it.

Hart and Trick had already engaged the two larger-than-life predators. Not before they could do some damage though, I thought as my stomach rolled painfully in my abdomen, my eyes taking in all the inert forms of fallen survivors. Some of them not quite while anymore. I counted at least three just between myself and the cabin. I swallowed hard and gripped my pike tight enough to turn my knuckles white.

Hart was dodging in and out of the dark shadows of the trees to our left, using their cover to shoot arrows at the rexes before disappearing again and losing their interest as they would turn back towards the nearest, and supposedly easiest target; Trick. He was ducking in and out of the larger of the two rexes feet, just barely evading its teeth every so often. Suddenly, and without warning, Tanner and Badge rushed forward to help cover Trick.

And me? I just stood there with a panicked expression, my chest rising and falling so fast I was probably going to hyperventilate. I watched as the three guys ducked, dodged and sped around the huge predators so closely that I thought they'd be chomped on for sure at some points. Every now and then an arrow would whiz through the darkness and lodge itself in the hide of one of the rexes. Much to the large reptile's dismay as they let out piercing roars of agitation each time.

I saw it happen. Tanner sliced his sword down between the toes of the dark green colored rex, which was slightly smaller than it's grey partner. It lifted its head in anger as an arrow flew through the air and with a small 'thunk' sound, found itself plunged into the rex's right eye. The carnivore stumbled away from the pain it couldn't escape…

Which put it a mere ten feet from me once its feet stopped moving. I stood stock still, staring up into its bloodied face as its mouth opened and closed a couple times, its short forelimbs scratching uselessly at its chin as it tried to free its eye of the foreign object.

This close, even in the dim light of the evening, I could see all the fresh wounds that adorned the rex's face and underbelly. Huge gashes covered its legs as well, blood seeping from them and trailing down it's scaly body. I looked back up at its face and gasped when I saw its one eye that wasn't skewered through with an arrow was trained on me. I involuntarily took a step back and the rex rumbled as it advanced on me.

 _Ah, hell._

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So glad you're all still with me! ^.^ I hope you're still enjoying the read :D


	17. Victorious

I suppressed the scream that definitely wanted to break free as I stumbled backwards, my mind whirling and trying to think of what to do. My eyes followed the rex's movements as it advanced on me and I clenched my teeth together. Bumbling around wasn't going to put any space between myself and the huge creature, and if I kept leading it in the direction I currently was, I was going to end up guiding it right down to the docks with all the people there. My hands tightened on my pike. I couldn't let that happen.

I planted my feet on the ground and leaned forward as the rex closed the rest of the distance between us. It's large mouth opened and I sprang forward. I heard the monster's teeth chomp together right behind me where I had just been standing as I dashed through, between its feet. I could smell its putrid breath and feel the ground shaking underneath me with every step the huge carnivore took. It wasn't until that moment I realised I didn't just need to be wary of the thing's teeth. One wrong step could leave me flatter than a flap-jack.

The ground shook violently below me as the rex tried to turn quickly to follow my movements. Its breathing sounded loud and guttural, only adding to the scariness of this whole ordeal. I did my best to try and stay out of reach of the predator's teeth, which mainly kept me running about behind its legs that were thicker than the trees I had cut down during my first week on this island. The uneven, quaking ground did nothing but trip me up slightly here and there, which rewarded me with a few close calls, each time the creature's teeth missed my backside by mere inches as I scrambled to regain my footing and move out of range again.

A sudden, loud roar rang out through the air from the direction of the other rex and I spared a quick glance to see it stumbling backwards, a spear sticking out the side of the rex's large nose. I spun my head back around as the smaller, though still extremely large, green rex I had been dodging around answered its partner's roar and rushed forward, apparently forgetting about me. I was stunned, but when I saw the rex's tail swooping at me as it lumbered off, I was able to dodge just enough to soften the brunt of the blow as it slammed into my back, I went sprawling forward, catching myself with my palms at the last minute. My pike rolled a few feet away from me before a rock in its path stopped it.

I scrambled to my hands and knees, looking back over at the rexes as I crawled forward, toward my only weapon. I was just about to push myself up to my feet when something grabbed my arm and yanked me up. I yelped, spinning around to get space between myself and the new threat, only to find Hart standing there, glaring at me.

"The hell were you thinking?" She growled but started pulling me after her toward the treeline before I could answer.

I stumbled for a moment, and she slowed just long enough for me to collect my bearings. Once I righted myself and was able to follow after her she sped back up. "What was I supposed to do?" I asked, my emotions swirling around in my head in a huge ball of confusion, but my voice sounded angry.

"Oh, I don't know. Run maybe?" She quipped back at me.

"To where? The docks where more victims were waiting? I was doing just fine." I defended myself, even though I was thoroughly glad the rex had lost interest in me. We reached the treeline and Hart pushed me against a tree as she went back to watching the showdown between our comrades and the rexes. I looked out from around the trunk I was now leaning on for support as I caught my breath and gauged what I could from the little clearing in front of me. Badge and Tanner were closest to us, their sights set on the smaller green rex that I had been facing down with while Trick was facing the larger, grey rex on his own.

My anxiety peaked seeing the three of them out there with the large predators, and my hands bit into the bark of the tree as my eyes followed the scene. The grey rex I noticed was limping slightly, and after a few moments I was able to tell that it was its left leg that was bothering it. My eyes scanned for the wound that had done the crippling blow and as the rex turned again, my gaze zeroed in on the deep gash. Blood ran down the creature's leg from the wound it had sustained. It looked like it had been caused by a sword.

My attention turned back to Trick just as he expertly dodged the rex's teeth again to land a jab with his pike into the carnivore's abdomen above him. He jumped again, just missing being stepped on by his foe, but he didn't see the green rex's tail whipping in his direction as it continued squaring off with Badge and Tanner. It hit him in the back, hard. He tumbled forward a few feet before losing this balance and rolling to the ground.

The grey rex only needed to take one step to the side and Trick would be an easy snack. I stopped thinking. Almost as one, Hart and I dashed out from the cover of the trees as we ran straight into the thick of the battle. She strung an arrow and loosed it about halfway, giving the rex pause as it shook its head, trying to dislodge the arrow now protruding from the side of its face. It let out a roar, lowering its face to where Trick was. I yelled, pulling back my arm and hurling my pike the way I had that night in the training room when Trick had given me some pointers.

The pike flew through the air, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Trick clambering to get up and out of reach of the rex's teeth, then my pike hit the rex in the shoulder. Hard enough to sink into its hide. Hart, on my left ran towards Trick, I decided on a different course of action. My eyes darted around on the ground until I found Trick's pike and I made a beeline for it. I bent down, grabbing it without slowing down as I circled back around behind the grey giant and rammed the pike into the already opened flesh on the back of the rex's left leg.

The pike sunk into its hide and, using my momentum, I kept running, yanking the pike and twisting it with my movements. The rex let out a horrific sounding roar as its left leg collapsed on itself, bringing the large carnivore tumbling down on its side. The ground shook, the rex's heavy body slammed onto the ground beside me and I skittered away, frowning. Its other leg, the one without a severed ligament kicked uselessly as the predator tried to right itself back into a standing position.

I spun around to face the green rex which was roaring as it backed away from Tanner and Badge, its gaze looking between the two humans and its fallen comrade. I watched as the two guys kept advancing on it, the rex stopped showing signs of aggression and just kept backing away, its roars were quieter, almost pleading, as if it were calling out to the fallen grey one to join it. After a few moments, the green carnivore gave one last call before it turned and disappeared off beyond the hill on the other side and into more trees. I returned my attention back to the fallen, grey beast that… I had taken down?

My eyes widened as the realization came to me and I lifted my hand to the side of my head, grabbing a fistful of my hair in disbelief as I studied the form of the rex in front of me. My breaths were still coming in large, ragged puffs which were only worsened when the anxiety of what just happened caught up to me.

"Holy shit," I mumbled uselessly to myself.

"Look at that! I do believe our little Horizon is growing up!" Hart laughed.

"I tell ya, she kills one man and now she thinks she can take on the whole Ark!" Trick hollered, whooping happily as Tanner threw his arm around my shoulders, shaking his other fist in the air. A small twinge flickered through my chest at the mention of the Titan's member whose life I had taken, but it was soon replaced with excitement.

"Holy shit, I saved your useless rump!" I yelled, pointing at Trick.

"That you did newbie," he chuckled, punching me lightly in the arm.

"I do believe she's in shock, look at that grin. I haven't seen a look like that on her face since I met her," Tanner laughed, shaking my shoulders playfully.

I laughed with him and took a step back towards the rex which had mostly stopped struggling now. It's side rose and fell with great, lumbering breaths, its throat making a gurgling growl with each exhale.

"What happens with this guy now?" I asked, pretty sure I knew the answer.

"We cook him up of course! Fresh meat and drink for everyone tonight! Badge, how many more barrels you got for sale?" Scooter walked into the mass.

"Five of the normal stuff, two of the really good stuff," he answered back. I noticed then that he was the roughest looking one there. At some point, one of the rexes had got him. His left arm was all bloody and he walked with a slight limp.

"I'll buy it all. We'll make a celebration out of this victory! And we will also hold a service for the lives we lost today," he gestured towards the fallen rex and a girl who had been standing behind him walked up to the grey beast's face and lifted her sword. With one swift strike she plunged her weapon deep into the rex's eye. It thrashed from the initial blow but then stilled. It's chest deflated of all the air inside it then it was completely motionless. "Thank you Arora," Scooter patted her back and she shook her head.

"No need to thank me. The beast ate my housemate. It was satisfying avenging him," she muttered, turning on her heel and stalking off the way she'd come.

Scooter watched her until she was halfway down the hill then he turned back to face us, a huge smile plastered across his face. "I will go make preparations to get this celebration started!"

I leaned in towards Tanner, holding my hand up against the side of my mouth as I whispered to him, "A service and a celebration all in one night? Doesn't seem like a long enough time to mourn…"

"When you live on the Ark, you gotta move on and live when you can. People die all the time, if you mourned for each person for too long, you'd never stop mourning. I know if I were to die, I wouldn't want you guys standing around, wasting your time feeling sad that I was gone. Remember me, but do so while living. Don't let this place destroy your spirit," he said all of this with a casual grin on his face and I was struck dumb. He talked about his own death so easily, like it didn't phase him at all, the possibility that it could happen.

Tanner's eyes flicked quickly to something behind me and I turned to follow his gaze, just catching the glare on Hart's face as she stalked off. I wondered briefly what had destroyed her celebratory mood and looked to Trick for a clue. He was watching Hart march off, shaking his head slowly. That was when the words he'd told me flashed through my mind again, about Hart acting emotionless most of the time. I felt like there was something missing, some piece to the puzzle that I hadn't quite placed yet.

I didn't get much time to think about it though as my hair was suddenly ruffled and a hand pressed my head down and to the side. I stumbled sideways, away from Tanner. My hands shot up to my head to protect my hair from further assault, my eyes looking around for the culprit. Trick stood there, resting his arm on Tanner's shoulder and I glared at him.

"You can rest assured that I won't cry for ya buddy," Trick said to Tanner, grinning slyly.

Tanner laughed, "Good that!" He punched Trick softly in his side and then turned back to look at me.

"You're all insane," I heard myself say as I shook my head, but I couldn't stop the smile that made its way across my face.

"Says the newb who just ran out and speared a rex in the leg. You've got more balls than half the men in this community," Trick laughed and Tanner joined him. My face warmed up when I realized the enthusiasm over the take-down was turning into praise now.

"Come on you three, let's get down to the raft and get the barrels unloaded," Badge chuckled, his head shaking back and forth.

"Almost set to get the celebration underway!" Scooter called out to us, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder as he approached. "Few people are still saying their goodbyes to the ones we lost, but if we wait much longer, half the night is already going to have passed us by!" He chortled and I scrunched my nose up at the sound.

"Well, we've got the goodies ready here, and I saw Arora and a group of people with her taking apart the rex, the smell of that food is making my stomach growl louder than those rexes were earlier," Trick answered the other man, patting the first barrel they'd set up fondly. I glanced at the barrel apprehensively. I had no idea how I would act when drunk and wasn't eager to find out in front of all these people. I glanced up over the hill and asked the question that had been on the forefront of my mind.

"What if that green chomper comes back while we're all inebriated?"

"Not everyone will be drinking. Myself and a select few others plan to keep our wits about us in case we're needed to protect the community from anything," Scooter patted my back softly with a grin. I wondered briefly where these "protectors" were earlier when only my group of friends had been risking their necks to protect all these people. But I let it slide with a small shrug.

"Heya Trick," said one of the women who was standing beside Scooter. She was tall with dark hair and I was definitely jealous of her body. Toned muscles, a sleek build. Yep. Total jealousy.

"Oh, hey Tosi. Where were you earlier during all the fun?" Trick seemed to notice the girl for the first time, which didn't appear to have made this Tosi girl any too happy.

"I was out hunting, making myself useful. Wasted efforts apparently," she mumbled. I had the distinct feeling that she hadn't been as excited to learn about the rex's demise as everyone else in the community seemed to have been. I felt myself take a step back, hoping to make myself invisible to her piercing gaze.

"Guess our girl here just beat ya to it," Trick said slyly, pulling me forward to stand beside him. So much for hiding.

Tosi's cold gaze moved over to me almost lazily and her eyes moved up and down my body as if she were scanning me. I fought the urge to look down. This girl was clearly someone I didn't want to mess with. Damn you Trick.

"Hard to believe this little stringbean took down a rex," she said, her voice held no amusement at all. I immediately decided I didn't like her. She turned back to face Trick, completely ignoring my existence again. Which I was definitely ok with. "So, how've you been?"

"As good as you can be on the Ark," Trick murmured, sounding like he himself was tiring of the conversation.

I slipped myself out of Trick's grasp, putting space between myself and the small group Scooter had brought with him as I looked out over the growing crowd. When I'd make eye contact with someone, I was usually offered a friendly smile and even occasionally a wave to which I always returned the gesture awkwardly.

"I think you're famous," Tanner leaned over and whispered conspiratorially in my ear.

"Oh please. One, it wasn't just me. You, Trick, Badge and Hart did most of the work. And two, I can't be the only one around here who's taken down a beastie," I grumbled, trying to ignore the heat that started to flush across my cheeks.

"Even so, you were the one who took it down, and Trick hasn't been being any too quiet about you're being a... " he trailed off, a shy, amused smile crinkling his eyes.

"A newb?" I groaned, finishing his sentence for him and Tanner chuckled, nodding his head. I rolled my eyes and shot Trick a glare, though he didn't see it, still engrossed in his conversation with Scooter and Tosi.

"Come on, let's go sit over by the fire and wait for the festivities to begin," Tanner pulled my wrist and I followed him without complaining. I purposely avoided taking another glance at Trick as we left them behind. Instead, I busied myself with looking around the gathering place.

"Say, why don't we have one of those?" I muttered, looking at the industrial grill that was placed in a small lean-to off to the one side of the clearing where even more people were still arriving. It was covered in slabs of meat that I assumed were rex steaks and burgers. My stomach growled.

"We do now, that's what we bought with our last barrels. A grill and extra gas to go with it. Let me tell you, Badge's eyes were lit up like a kid at Christmas," he laughed and I giggled, imagining Badge's face as he fawned over his new toy. When we had gotten back to the raft, I had made Badge show me his arm so I could patch him up. It had turned out just to be a serious case of road rash. At one point one of the rexes had kicked him and the force in which he hit the ground had left him with one torn up forearm. After many assurances that he was fine, I'd finally left him alone as long as he'd promised me to wash it up.

Tanner sat down on a felled tree that was serving as a bench of sorts and pulled me down beside him. A yawn escaped my lips and he glared at me.

"The night is way too young for that, so you just knock it off and wake the hell up."

I frowned, scrunching up my eyebrows. "Sorry, guess I'm crashing from the adrenaline rush earlier," I had to staunch a second yawn. Thinking about yawning definitely wasn't helping me stop.

Someone slapped the back of my head and I jumped slightly, twisting around to see who it was. Trick beamed down at Tanner and I and stepped over the log, sitting down on my other side. Tosi strode past in front of us, a glare settled on her features and I grinned back at her. I didn't want to start any problems, but I couldn't help the smug thought that blossomed in my head as the other girl walked past. Here I was, sitting between these two hotties, and she was going it alone.

I didn't get much more time to gloat before Scooter's voice rang out through the clearing. "Alright! Let's get this party started! As our guests of honor, The Guardians will start off the night with the first drinks!" A round of applause and cheer rose into the air around us and Scooter approached us. I noticed then that Badge and Hart had both joined us on the log, sitting on the opposite side of Trick. I was leaning forward, looking over at Badge with a grin on my face so I didn't notice at first, but with a nudge from Trick I pulled back and saw Scooter holding his hand out to me. I took it, expecting a handshake but he pulled me up and against him, wrapping his arm around my shoulders.

"Tonight we drink and dine to the memories of those we lost. But we also celebrate in our victory against the creatures that took them from us! Horizon, new to the Ark, has proven herself a valuable friend and ally! To The Guardians!" Scooter yelled and a resounding chorus of "To The Guardians" answered him. He held out a crude looking glass full of what I could only assume was the alcohol he'd bought from us and I took it from him, hoping my face wasn't as red as it felt. And if it was, I was hoping it was too dark for anyone to see it. I saw my four friends all getting glasses of their own out of the corner of my eye and in unison, we put our drinks to our mouths and drank to us.

"Alright, let's party!" Scooter yelled over the cheering that had ensued and suddenly, the clearing was brimming with motion and life as people moved about to get their own drinks or to mingle with others.

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And there we have it. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Thank you all for the positive feedback!


	18. Drunken Nights and Love Bites

_I think I'm dying._ The thought was supposed to have been spoken, but I was having a little trouble keeping the contents of my stomach down. The world was spinning around me as I stumbled forward, trying to find the log I had been sitting on earlier. I could have sworn it was somewhere around here…

I was just shooting one of the dancing pego-thief-things that had been following me all night a thumb's up when suddenly my world turned upside down. My feet no longer touched the ground and my stomach lurched. I found myself staring up at the night sky. And Trick's face.

He was holding me in his arms.

Even in my current state, my mind wandered to how this might look to others and I began to kick wildly.

"Pu' me down Schick," I fought against his hold, my words slurring. He laughed and shook his head, amusement dancing in his eyes.

"You need a little time out. I think you've had enough for the time being," he chided, taking me a few steps further before setting me down again. I was standing beside one of the makeshift benches that surrounded the huge bonfire which had been setup for the night's events. But it was further back than the log I had previously been occupying, away from the fire and the people crowding there.

I eyed the purple and yellow striped pego-thief-thingie silently, it leaned against the end of the log. As I got closer, the thing lifted a mug towards me in a toast before downing all the contents. Trick's hands guided me around and then down until my butt rested firmly on the bench.

"I'm gonna call you Napoleon," I declared, winking at the little creature.

"You what?" Trick's voice came from behind me. I hushed him with my hand, not looking away from Napoleon, who, along with his friends, had been entertaining me all night long with silly little dances and stunts. I gestured at him, trying to make Trick understand.

"Him. His name is Napoleon now," I beamed. I could feel Trick lean forward, trying to gaze around me. Silence. I finally turned and gave him a flat glare. "It's a good name," I demanded.

"There's no one there," Trick's one eyebrow shot skyward and my eyes narrowed.

"Yer daft. He's standin' right there, drinkin' my beer and laughing at us," I rolled my eyes.

"Uh… Who is?"

"I told you! Napoleon!"

"Who's Napoleon?" He asked me, I could hear the smile in his voice so I narrowed my eyes, turning back towards him again.

"Are you blind?"

"Pretty sure I'm not. Are you hallucinating?" he shot back at me.

"What? No!" I growled.

"I think you are. I think you've had too much to drink," he stated, a smirk pulling up the corners of his mouth.

"I'm even drunk not… no… not drunk! I'm not drunk ev-"

"Ok, ok, I get it. You're not drunk. Don't hurt yourself," Trick laughed, cutting off what I had said. I nodded obstinately.

"Right," I huffed, turning away again, I saw that the pink with green polka-dotted friend of Napoleon's joined him now and they were attempting to pull off a two-dinosaur pyramid. "Floyd." I grinned, quickly naming the new one.

"I still think you need to rest for a couple minutes," Trick said, sitting down beside me. I glared at him, puffing out my chest while turning to look at him. I jabbed my finger in his face and he laughed. His laugh was so carefree and genuine. I hesitated for a moment.

Then I completely forgot what I had been about to yell at him for, so I quickly redirected my thoughts.

"You need'a show me more fighting!"

"You want me to train you some more," he stated, clearly having a good time making fun of me for some reason.

"Yes. I need to know all the attacks," I grumbled and he roughed up my hair.

"Will do. But not while you're in this state."

"I'm not even tired though!" I defended myself.

"I wasn't talking about you're being tired. But if you are, you should get some sleep then," he shook his head at me.

"I said m'not tired though. Jeez, don't you ever hear me?" I groaned, pushing him as I went to stand back up. I felt his hand grip my wrist and he pulled me back down onto the bench and up against him, wrapping his right arm around my shoulders.

"No you don't. Where do you think you're going?"

"Get 'nother drink. You're not my mum," I pushed against him, hard. But what good it did me since it had no effect on him whatsoever.

"Thank the Ark Gods for that," he muttered, grinning down at me. I glared back up at him and he laughed again. "As hard as you might try, you're way less intimidating when you're drunk than when you're not. And even when you're sober, your intimidation levels are less than those of a dodo bird's" he muttered and shook his head. "That doesn't include Killer. That bird just has a few wires crossed in his head," Trick muttered, his smile never leaving his face.

"You make no sense," I groaned, pushing at him again.

"Says the one who was talking about pink, jelly-filled zebras earlier," Trick muttered. I had no comeback for that and huffed again but he just pulled me closer in response to my disdainful attitude. I stopped fighting and leaned against him, yawning and not bothering to cover my mouth. "Whoah, careful there. Your mouth is big enough to catch a pelagornis inside it. You might accidentally swallow one of the kids," he snickered.

"Jerk," I mumbled.

"Yea yea."

"I'm serious though. I need somethin'a drink," I grumbled.

Trick patted my shoulder, "Water. I'll go get some for you. Stay here," he warned, sliding away from me and standing up. I nodded sweetly at him. When he seemed satisfied that I was apparently listening to him, he nodded and walked off. Immediately my gaze returned to Napoleon and Floyd.

"I can very well get my own water, right?" They both nodded at me and began scampering away. I beamed and started after them. The ground seemed to have its own personal vendetta against me tonight. It pitched and rolled under my feet and several times I had to stop moving and aim some well-placed glares and warnings at it.

An all blue version of Napoleon joined our little band of rogues, whom which I quickly named Skipper.

I followed along behind the three acrobatically-inclined pegos as they led me off, down the beach and in between the two docks. I grinned, running, or stumbling, [really, it's all just a matter of perception] to the water's edge and knelt down, scooping up some of the cold water in my hands and splashing it in my face. After a few sips I looked back up to see Napoleon, Floyd and Skipper prancing around on the other side of the bank.

I decided to follow them. They hadn't led me astray yet!

Lucky for me, the water was shallow enough that I could touch the bottom with my feet the whole way through, the deepest section brought the water up to my chin. But soon enough I was on the other side, dancing in a circle with my three colorful friends. We continued our little journey, the sounds from tonight's festivities were all but gone now. Too far away to be heard over the cool breeze and random noises in the night.

A glimmer of orange caught my attention. Bright orange, like fire, only it wasn't. I narrowed my eyes, two of my three thieving companions doing the same as we tried to make out what it was.

"If the ground would stop moving…" I grumbled disdainfully. Napoleon and Skipper nodding in agreement. Floyd was currently laying on his back making sand angels.

Without another word we all moved forward again, in the direction of the strange orange light. Once close enough I could see that it was a creature. With wings. "A pterodactyl?" I muttered, but Napoleon stuck his paw out at me, waving one claw back and forth at me. He gave me a look that was easy for me to understand. _Tsk tsk tsk. You know that's not what they're called._

"Right, uhm…" what was it Badge had called them? Ptera-something-dons? My head lurched as I tried to remember and I quickly shook my head to dispel it. "Oh whatever, that's not important anyways. That thing isn't one of those ptera-things," I complained at Napoleon. He shrugged.

I looked back up at the flyer, it was resting on the ground, perfectly still aside from glancing around occasionally. The huge fin on its head was orange and apparently thin enough for the torchlight on the other side of it to make it appear as if it was glowing. That's what I had been seeing.

But strangest of all was that it had some kind of contraption on it. I narrowed my eyes, trying to figure out what it was without getting any closer.

"Horizon?" A cold, dark voice emanated from behind me. I yelped and jumped, spinning around to face the voice. My feet got tangled on themselves and I fell back, a small "oof" rushing out between my lips. Grimacing, I reached behind myself and started massaging my backside.

"W-who's there?" I demanded, wishing for the millionth time that the floor would stop trying to throw me around.

Instead of answering me, a shadowy figure emerged from the trees I had just walked past. "What are you doing here?" he asked, stepping close enough for me to see him.

"Hey! Shark boy!" I grinned up at him. It was none other than Demonic, the man who had jumped on top of a shark to save me back at Tribe of Anni's place. The look he gave me in return was expressionless, his eyes calculating.

"Indeed," he said simply, stepping past me.

"Where are you going?" I scrambled up to my feet to try and follow him.

"Away. You should too. The Titan's aren't happy that one of their rafts was taken. They're looking for who did it."

It took me a moment to understand the implication behind what he said, but once it clicked in my muddled brain, my eyes widened.

"Oh dear me," I mumbled.

"They somehow seem to the your tribe is involved. So be careful," with that, he pulled himself onto the back of the flying creature and the thing spread its wings.

Immediately, all thoughts of what he'd just told me vanished, my eyes grew large enough to look like saucers. "What is that?" I pointed to his mount, looking up at him.

"My ride," he said, his voice deadpan. The flyer jumped into the air, flapping its leathery wings in quick, powerful strokes. The torch sputtered and flickered from the breeze, but Demonic and his flying animal were gone quickly. Swallowed up by the darkness in the sky.

"Horizon?!" A call reached me from down the beach and I sighed.

"What now?" I shot Skipper an aggravated look and he frowned, shrugging. Napoleon pointed down the beach from where we came and I followed his gesture with my eyes. "Oh, it's him," I sighed. "I got my own water!" I called out to Trick who was jogging towards me, closing the distance rather fast. I glared at the ground, "What? You only hate me tonight? Why won't you knock him on his ass?"

"Who are you talking to?" Trick asked once he was close enough. I jabbed an accusing finger towards the sand at my feet. Trick gave me a confused look before shaking his head. "Why did you go off alone?"

"I'm not alone," I rolled my eyes, sharing an exasperated look with Napoleon.

"You're… Not?"

"No. Napoleon, Floyd and Skipper are here. And I just had a delightful conversation with Demonic," I put my hands on my hips.

"Napo-" His voice broke off and he sighed. "Demonic too, huh?" he asked, his head shaking. "And what have you all been talking about?"

I shrugged. "They don't really talk. I just know what they're thinking. Except Skipper…" I shot the little blue thief a cautious look. "You never can tell with him."

Trick followed my gaze with his, one of his eyebrows almost disappearing under his blond bangs. "Right… What about Demonic?" he asked, stepping close to me and draping his arm over my shoulders. He turned me and began leading me back to camp.

"Oh! He was riding some glowy, leather, flying thing. Said we should leave because uhm…" I paused. What did he say again?

"Probably because he misses us. That ol' rascal. Glowing leather, that's new though," Trick sniggered.

I remembered the off-handed attitude and the cold eyes that made up the bulk of Demonic.

"No, I don't think that was it. Who would miss you?" I muttered through a yawn.

"Awe, thanks so much," Trick shot back with a grin.

Soon, we were wading back through the water and I lost track of the conversation again. "Gah, why so cold?"

Trick was gripping me around the waist now and doing what he could to keep my head above water since I kept trying to double over on myself to huddle up against the cold

"Let's get you back to the fire to dry you off," he said once we stepped back up on the right side of the bank again. "And me as well now too," he added as an afterthought. I let him lead me to where I could find warmth again and didn't fight it when he guided me down onto one of the logs. Trick sat down beside me and pulled me against him. Once I felt the heat that was radiating from his side, I didn't fight it. I stared ahead, watching Napoleon and Floyd sword fight with two pieces of wood and Skipper… Well, who knew what he was doing. Looked like he was trying to reenact Romeo and Juliet.

I groaned when the world tilted again and sunk deeper into Truck's side. My eyes slowly sliding closed.

"You ok?" his voice rumbled in my ear through his chest.

"You make a very nice but hard pillow," I grumbled.

"You might find it more comfortable if you weren't in my armpit," he mused. "Try my lap maybe?"

"You smell like what dreams're made of," I murmured, closing my eyes fully now. I let my head slide down until it rested on his thighs.

"I know I do. Now sleep," he said, his chuckles were the last thing I heard until the world fell away into darkness.

"Ow, my poor head," I grumbled, pulling my hand up to rub my eyes. I heard the soft sound of water, when small waves hit against the side of a raft or dock. Then I could feel the soft rocking of the raft beneath me. Well, at least I knew where I was now even though I couldn't remember how I'd gotten there.

Actually, I couldn't remember half of the previous night. What little bits I could recall were vague and a little foggy at best. I yawned and pulled my knees up toward my chest but they hit something and I frowned. I slowly opened my eyes and Trick's face filled my vision. My mouth dropped open, my eyes widening just as much, realizing that we were sharing the same sleeping bag. "Wha-" I half squeaked, unable to say anything more. Trick's face contorted, his eyes still closed as he sighed.

"So noisy in the morning. And that morning breath," he grumbled, turning away from me. The confines of the sleeping bag didn't allow for much room so I was now staring at his muscular, shirtless back. But that wasn't what caught me completely off guard. My knees… Were touching his ass. I scrambled up and out of the blanket, and pressed my back against the chest. I had been sleeping sandwiched between Trick and the small storage chest that held Badge's, Hart's and my own armor in it. Trick rolled closer to me, onto his back to finally look at me. "It's still earl-"

"What are you doing in my sleeping bag?" I demanded before he could finish.

"Sleeping. Obviously. It's still too early to get up," he groaned, lifting the blankets invitingly. "Come on," he grinned. My eyes unwittingly roamed over his chiseled chest before I forced myself to look back up at his face. But it was too late, he'd caught my moment of weakness and his casual grin was replaced with his cocky one. "It's cold out there, let's keep each other warm," his voice was still husky from sleep and my heart pounded in my chest. I clamped my teeth shut and narrowed my eyes.

"I'll show you cold," I growled, placing my back flat against the chest behind me; planting my feet firmly against Trick's side I quickly and forcefully pushed hard with my legs. The sleeping bag, with Trick inside it, slid across the surface of the raft and off the edge. He let out a short exclamation of surprise before the splash swallowed his voice. I grinned evilly but then I remembered where we were. My eyes widened and I crawled quickly to the edge, visions of piranhas tearing Trick apart while he was stuck in the sleeping bag filled my imagination. I looked down over the edge but didn't see any sign of him. The sleeping bag was drifting away down the stream, caught by the current. "Trick?" I called out lightly, stretching over the edge a little more to see if he was underneath the raft.

I frowned, sitting back on my haunches, tangling my hands in my hair. Should I call for help? What did I do? I felt water droplets fall on me then, glancing worriedly up at the sky. Was it about to start raining?

But rather than sky, there was a very large, very wet Trick blocking out my vision of the early morning sun. My face blanched and I groped for words. "I-I-I didn't think… Don't-"

"You asked for this," he said, his voice sounded like he was sentencing someone to the death penalty. His face was dark, silhouetted against the morning sky.

"No, don't!" I tried pleading, but it was too late. He grabbed my shoulders, easily lifting me up and then tossed me backwards, off the raft. I screamed, flailing my arms as I tried to right myself in the air before I collided with the water. The chilled morning air was nothing compared to the initial shock of the water.

I kicked wildly, swinging my arms until my head broke the surface again. I inhaled sharply, sputtering and shaking water out off my face. I had just gotten my eyes opened when Trick landed in the water beside me, sending another flood of water back into my face. I cursed loudly and I angled myself away from him, reaching for the edge of the raft. Just as my fingers came in contact with the firm, wooden structure, something grabbed my ankle and pulled me back under and away from the raft. I spun, reaching out with my hands as my eyes blinked wildly, trying to get used to the cold water hitting them. I smacked at Trick, but he just smiled back at me, unfazed by my weakened blows.

He pulled me towards him and swam up. I paddled with my free hand while I kicked my feet, more than willing to resurface. I sucked in a deep breath as soon as my head breached the surface and I shot Trick a glare.

"You told me last night you wanted me to train you some more," he grinned, satisfied with himself.

"I don't remember that. And this doesn't look like training," I huffed.

"Sure it is! Pretend I'm a sarco," he flashed a cheshire grin at me.

"A what?" I asked, using this chance to start edging my way back to the raft while I treaded water.

"A giant alligator that could finish off your scrawny ass in one bite," he started paddling towards me. Before I could answer though, Badge's familiar voice chimed in behind me.

"Technically, a sarcosuchus was more closely related to a crocodile than their cousins, the alligators. But he's right, if you tangoed with one of those, you better… No, nevermind. Just, don't ever mess with one of them. They're fast in the water, and very aggressive."

"I don't plan on ever even seeing one, let alone playing tag with it. When did you get there? You're so sneaky," I mumbled as I felt my cheeks heat up, reaching out to grasp the ridge of the raft again.

"And you're so dead," Trick's voice rang out from right behind me and my eyes widened when I took in his words. I spun around as fast as I could in the water to try and defend myself, but I was too late. Trick's arms were around me and I was being dragged under. Again.

And then? He bit me! Right in the neck!

A gasp escaped my lips and air bubbles shot up past my face in a hurry to rejoin the air above. His lips were warm against my neck, a stark contrast to the cold water that was surrounding every other part of me. In fact, everywhere that Trick was touching me felt warmer than normal and I fought back a shiver at the thought.

I brought my knees up and pushed at Trick's midsection with my feet but it did no good, he kept holding me tightly against himself, his mouth still pressed against my skin. I felt his teeth scrape against me one more time before he pulled back and away from me, an impish grin painted across his face. He pushed down on my shoulders to propel himself back up and I struggled against the force of it. My feet were close enough to the bottom of the river now that my kicks were stirring up the sand.

Just as I began to start my own ascension, a bright red dot in the distance caught my attention and I squinted through the water. One of the large fish that Badge had told me was called a coel-something was lazily swimming around. But even from this distance I could tell it was huge. I heard faint yelling, muffled by the water, coming from the docks and I fought my way to the surface again, reaching it just as Trick was pulling himself up on the raft.

I made a show of completely ignoring Trick when he offered me a hand up, lifting myself up out of the water as I asked Badge what all the commotion was about.

"Sounds like a large coelacanth has wandered into the area," he said as if that explained everything.

"People get that excited over large fish? There's still so much meat from the rex…" I mumbled.

"Coels are known to eat pretty much any inanimate object they find in the water. The loot one can find inside them is unfathomable. Especially the larger ones. They tend to eat way more than the smaller ones do." Trick informed me and I raised an eyebrow.

"Huh." I muttered, still not looking at him while I worked on wringing water out of my hair. I pulled it all to one side, squeezing the water out and watching it drip back into the river. I heard Trick chuckle and I finally gave in and glanced at him, giving him a questioning look. He shot me a smug smirk but turned and walked off toward the dock. "Jerk," I grumbled under my breath, trying to ignore the fact that my mind went right back to the thought that his lips had just been on my skin. I rolled my eyes at myself.

"Anything else you wanted to do while we're here lass? We're going to turn around and head back home since we've already sold all the beer," Badge asked me, a kind smile on his face.

"It's kind of exciting to think we're heading back home," I sighed, sitting on the edge of the raft and leaning back, propping myself up on my elbows. I looked up at the clear, blue sky. The morning wind was still chilly, but I barely felt it still since the air was definitely warmer than the water had been. My eyes widened though when I realized what that meant. "Doesn't that mean we'll have to go back past the Titans?" I looked up at Badge worriedly. Something about that thought triggered something at the edge of my thoughts but I couldn't grasp what or why.

He gave me a calming smile and knelt down beside. "No need to worry lass. They won't attack us if they see we have three rafts, two of which will be manned by formidable fighters. And even that tribe knows what Trick is capable of. If they see him, they wouldn't dare come at us unless they had an army backing them. They're too cowardly." He patted my shoulder and stood back up, preparing the raft for take off. I nodded even though he wasn't looking anymore, still apprehensive about the idea.

Eventually I sighed and stood back up, asking if there was anything I could help with. But before he could answer, Hart's voice cut in.

"Whoah, nice love bite," she snickered, leaning against the pole at the front of the raft. I looked at her, my face a question mark. "Didn't realize you and Trick got that busy last night," she grinned wickedly. I frowned, automatically shaking my head to deny it.

"We didn't-"

"Shut up Hart, it's none of your business what we did last night," Trick came back just then, pushing the red-haired girl away from the mast so she had to catch herself.

"But we didn't-" I tried one more time but was interrupted again.

"Knew it wouldn't take you two very long," Hart snickered.

"Jealous?" Trick grinned, folding his arms.

"You wish," she quipped back.

"Oh, but I think you are."

"I'd rather kiss a Titanaboa right on the mouth before locking lips with you," she shot back.

"Don't lie. Horizon will back me-"

"We didn't do anything!" I yelled, shutting them both up. Hart looked at me startled, but Trick just grinned infuriatingly. I narrowed my eyes at him. Truth be told, I couldn't remember how I had even gotten to bed, so who knew what I'd done between my first drink and then. Hart recuperated from her shock and raised an eyebrow, shifting all her weight to one leg. She pointed at her neck and tilted her head.

"Then what's that," she asked.

My hand immediately shot up to where Trick had bit me when he'd been pretending to be the shark-o-dile thing. My eyes moved to Trick pleadingly, but all I was awarded with was an amused smile. I glared at him before returning my gaze to Hart.

"He bit me," I said lamely.

"Yea, I can tell," she chuckled and I felt myself blushing. Even my ears felt warm. I couldn't think of what else to say to defend myself but thankfully Badge cut in.

"Alright, leave the lass alone you two. We're moving out in five. Get the other rafts ready."

"The new raft is already tied up and ready. Hart and I actually decided to swap places. She's gonna take my place with Tanner. I'll ride with you and-"

"Can I ride with Hart and Tanner?" I asked in a flat voice, my eyes narrowed as I stared Trick down. He just smirked, his eyes glancing down at my hand that was still covering the side of my neck. I clamped my mouth shut and turned away from him to hide my face. That was when I noticed Badge was chuckling and shaking his head. He didn't answer my question and I sighed. Resigning myself to the voyage home with Trick tagging along.

"We won't be stopping by Tribe of Anni's on our way back through, so if we push ourselves, we could make it back to base before sunrise tomorrow." Badge informed me as I sat on the floor beside him, glaring half-heartedly at Trick's back. I had to keep reminding myself that he was annoying because my mind kept wanting to wander to things like how his muscles moved under his skin and how tan he was. His broad, shirtless shoulders, and his defined abs and pronounced biceps…

I groaned and rubbed my eyes, forcing myself to look away. One of my hands slid down to my neck.

"You alright there, lass?" Badge asked and I looked up at him. Concern was clear on his face, but I was pretty sure there was some amusement in his eyes too.

"Yea, just got a headache," I said lamely.

"It might be the heat. Go dangle your feet in the water. That small amount of coolness could do wonders," he advised and I just nodded, crawling over to the edge of the deck. But once I got there, I eyed the surface of the water warily. I glanced back at Badge and he nodded encouragingly. I grimaced, making sure he saw my face and he chuckled. I plopped down on my butt, swinging my legs out in front of me as I scooched myself closer to the edge.

Slowly, I lowered my feet into the cool water, but I kept my eyes on the water below me. Careful to watch for anything that wanted to come and bite my toes off or pull me under.

"You know, how horrible it would be if the kraken existed. I mean, we already have to deal with moby-dick-thingies. But a giant squid? That's just over the top," I complained loudly, turning to look at Badge again. He and Trick were both standing beside each other, looking at me. Badge looked like he'd just tasted something sour but Trick looked like he had just won the lottery. I eyed them suspiciously.

"Well, actually-"

"Trick…" Badge said calmly and Trick stopped what he was about to say. But it was enough. I felt my face pale and I pulled my legs up out of the water, scrambling back away from the edge.

"You have GOT to be kidding me!" I yelled and Trick started laughing.

"You don't need to worry about them lass. They prefer to stay down deep. I've never heard of one messing with a raft. But if you're diving. You better just pray to the Ark Gods then," he said, shaking his head slowly. Trick walked over and sat beside me.

"The water isn't really THAT bad," he said, pushing me closer to the side of the raft. I fought him, but just barely.

"Uh huh, wipe my memory of that Moby-Dick-thingie and maybe I'll believe you then," I grumbled to which he chuckled.

"What about the ichthies?" he reminded me and I bit my lower lip.

"You know what? Venus fly-traps smell good, but they close up on you and digest you just the same," I grumbled.

"Good point," Trick said, a genuine smile on his lips rather than his usual cocky grin.

"The water is pretty to look at. And it's home to the dolphins and fish we can eat, but it can also drown you. It has sharks. Giant sting-ray things. And now giant squids too!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up in front of me.

"Don't forget mosas, plessies, and the magical liopleurodon. Oh, and eels that can and will electrify you. And carnivorous jelly-fish that have a taste for humans." Trick stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Thank you. So much." I sighed, glaring at him through half-lidded eyes.

"Hey, just trying to keep you informed," he winked at me.

"What's a plessie and a mosa?" I asked, knowing I probably wouldn't like the answer.

"Think of a plessie as the Loch Ness monster's ugly cousin. And a mosa… Well, they're just giant, evil underwater monsters. You don't want to mess with one of them," Trick shrugged.

"I didn't plan on it…" I sighed, looking to Badge for some of his intelligent two-cents but he was smiling and looking out into the distance. I followed his gaze. Swimming alongside the other raft which was towing the raft we had pinched from The Titans, a few dozen feet ahead of us were the three same dolphins that always seemed to find us. I grinned and Trick turned then to see what had caught my attention.

"Well I'll be," he muttered and I nodded.

"Seems they've taken a liking to us," Badge said softly.

"We should tame them," Trick murmured thoughtfully.

"How?" I asked, excited at the thought. His head turned and he eyed me.

"You tell me. How'd you tame that ugly dodo bird of yours?"

I glared at him. "Killer is handsomer than you," I huffed and he smirked.

"So, you think I'm handsome then," he wriggled his eyebrows and I rolled my eyes to hide my moment of hesitation.

"You wish," I groaned, looking back at the three dolphins which were moving toward our raft now.

"Mhm…" Trick said, amusement clear in his tone.

* * *

Now I know it took me forever to upload again, but as an apology, I made this chapter the longest one yet.

Let me know what you guys think of the general lengths of my posts. Do oh I me longer or shorter posts? Are they easy for you to follow? Do you enjoy them? Are you enjoying the story thus far?


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